The Art of Love and War
by Avalantia
Summary: Set after S5E13. Annie and Jeff are friends, right? But then Annie made a promise to herself. And Jeff had a revelation. What's the worst that could happen?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Just a drabble that is the direct result of watching the season finale to Mr. Harmon's show like six times in a row.

Jeff couldn't wait to leave. It wasn't that he was unhappy about the fact that they'd saved Greendale. He was happy. Thrilled even. It wasn't that he was annoyed at anyone or anything per se. But he had to get the hell out of there. It wasn't even eight o'clock but he was done. Done with people wanting to talk to him. Done with Dave Matthews music. Done working so hard to avoid seeing her. Avoid seeing her in this new light. Seeing her as a grown woman that could stand up to him. Little Annie Adderall was all grown up and he didn't know why the realization had hit him so hard.

He'd seen it happening over the years. Small things. Like the way she narrowed her eyes at him when he asked her for something instead of just giving a squeak and blindly agreeing. The way she dressed, still so proper but now in slacks and heels instead of the little skirts and flats she'd always worn before. Her slow change from perky hyperactivity to graceful determination. And then she'd given a 'Winger Speech' and all he'd been able to think about was making her a real Winger. She'd been his friend for years. Years where they'd danced around their chemistry and their feelings. Years where he'd felt like a dirty old man every time he noticed how breathtakingly beautiful she was. But something had changed when she'd looked him in the eyes and told him it was okay to want what he wanted. He knew she'd been referring to Britta. But in that moment he knew. All he wanted was her. Not little Annie Adderall. No, all he wanted. All he'd ever wanted was her. Annie. And that wasn't something to be ashamed of anymore.

Glancing around he saw that Britta and Duncan were talking to Shirley and Hickey. He spared a small smile for Britta; glad that she seemed as relieved as he was that their panic-induced engagement was off. Abed and Rachel were laughing about something. Probably narrating the lives of everyone they saw. He didn't see the Dean or Annie anywhere. They were probably going to a storage room for food or something. Taking the opportunity to get the hell out of Dodge without anyone noticing, he practically ran for the faculty parking lot.

He'd taken two long strides down the empty hallway when a voice halted his progress.

"Jeffrey, where exactly are you going?" The Dean's voice was stern and full of knowing judgement.

Jeff's shoulders tensed and without turning around he replied tersely, "Home. I'm tired. It's been a weird day."

But the Dean blithely ignored the warning tone and approached him. Standing in front of Jeff he looked up and put a hand on his arm. Gently squeezing the muscles hidden under his shirt absently, as if from habit more than anything. "Is this about what happened in the basement?" he asked softly.

Shrugging the Dean's hand off, Jeff opened his mouth to respond with his characteristic wit and eloquence, "What? No. What? Huh? I mean. Pssh. Nothing happened. I mean. Yeah. What?"

Dean Pelton simply raised one eyebrow in a knowing manner and tilted his head to the side. "Oh something happened all right," he said with a small smile. "And I think I know what it was. But Jeffrey. You really shouldn't leave like this. We're all celebrating and we all have you to thank for saving our school. Why would you sneak out?"

Jeff's shoulders slumped and he sighed, "Look, Craig. It's just. I can't be here right now. I need to go home. And drink." Realizing what he'd said, he swiftly corrected. "Think. I meant think. I need to go home and think." Casting around for something else, anything else to say, he hurried babbled on. "About next year's lesson plans. Since there's going to be a next year now. No time like the present. Anyway thanks for your concern and I'm sure I'll see you over the summer, neighbor. Have a good night." Stepping around the Dean he swiftly walked out into the warm evening. Thankful that the Dean hadn't said anything more to keep him there.

He didn't hear the Dean mutter under his breath about the two biggest idiots he'd ever met.

As he arrived home he unlocked the door and entered with a sigh. Throwing his keys and wallet on the table by the front door, he toed off his shoes and padded over to pour himself a scotch. He downed it in one swallow and refilled the tumbler. Finishing that as well he refilled a third time before walking into the living room and setting the bottle on the coffee table. He collapsed onto the couch and stared into the amber scotch as if the answers he was looking for were hidden somewhere in the swirling liquid. With a sigh he leaned back and narrowed his eyes in irritation. Reaching behind his he grabbed the throw pillow lodged behind his back, intending to toss it to the other side of the couch.

It had been over a year since she had brought the pillow over. It was one of the many decorations she'd brought to spruce his condo up for that awful Christmas party. When the party had ended he'd reached up to take down the purple fabric above his window but had stopped when a small white hand had landed on his arm.

"Don't," she's said with a bright smile. "Leave them. They make your place look like a home. I want you to keep them."

He'd narrowed his eyes at her and spoke the thought as it formed, " You didn't bring these from your apartment. You bought them specifically to decorate my condo." He didn't add any inflection to change the statement to a question. They both knew there was no way he was wrong.

"Well of course I did," she'd laughed in the musical way she had. Her eyes narrowed just the slightest bit as she'd looked at him "They're part of my present to you. Didn't you see the bags I brought them in? So you'll keep them, right? It would be rude not to accept a Christmas present."

She could have used the Disney eyes and he would have been powerless to resist. But she hadn't. She's simply told him what she wanted in calm, certain tones. With a sigh he'd dropped his hand from the fabric. "Fine," he'd conceded. "But the scarf over the lampshade goes. It's a fire hazard."

Jeff opened his eyes, unsurprised to find that he'd been stroking the fabric of the pillow. With a growl he threw the offending item across the room and finished his scotch. Stupid Annie with her stupid beautiful face and her stupid amazing body and her stupid awesome personality. This was her fault. If she weren't so...her then he wouldn't be so utterly in lo- lust with her and that stupid machine wouldn't have responded to his feelings for her. Drinking directly from the bottle rather than pouring yet another glass, he pulled his phone from his pocket. He unlocked the screen after two tries and looked at the blurry icons. Four new texts. He hadn't felt his phone vibrate. He glanced at the time. One in the morning. Huh. How had so much time passed?

One from the Dean letting him know that if he needed to talk he was right next door. As if Jeff could ever forget. Two from Shirley scolding him for leaving before she got to thank him and letting him know she was proud of him. One from Britta saying basically the same thing. She was proud of him. She hoped they were cool. Letting him know she would be happy to therapize him if he wanted since she had a theory about what had happened. As if he wanted to hear her no-doubt awful theory.

Rolling his eyes, Jeff went to bed. He had no desire to think. Just wanted to be unconscious. Hopefully when he woke up these stupid feelings would be back in their box. With chains around it. Encased in cement. At the bottom of the ocean. And he could go back to pretending she was just his friend.

* * *

Annie hesitated before walking into Study Room F. Six days ago they had saved Greendale.

She had been happy. Euphoric, really, at knowing that her home was safe. But even knowing that they had driven Subway away and reached their goal hadn't been enough to really boost her spirits. She'd looked across the room and seen Jeff and Britta giving each other a high five with big smiles on their faces. Glowering at the two of them she had told Abed she would see him at home and had practically run in her haste to get the hell out of there. She'd just closed the door to the commons when she'd literally run into Dean Pelton, causing him to drop the bags of potato chips he'd been carrying. Annie'd exclaimed how sorry she was as she knelt to give him a hand picking them up.

"And where are you heading off to, Miss Edison?" The Dean had asked sternly.

"Oh I'm heading home. It's been a really strange day and I'm super tired." She'd lied with a perfectly straight face.

The Dean's face softened and she knew he'd seen right through her. "Annie, what's bothering you? I'd figure you would be the happiest person here after what just happened in the basement."

Confusion flickered across Annie's face before she figured out what he was saying. "Oh because I was leading the committee and we saved Greendale. Yes, Dean, I'm thrilled. Really. I'm just tired. Now that the adrenaline has run out I'm just exhausted."

The Dean raised an eyebrow and tilted his head as he looked at her. "No, Annie. That's not what I meant at all. Surely you know what...actually nevermind. It's not for me to say. You go home and get some rest. Now that the school is saved we still have finals next week. I'll see you around."

Annie had looked at him in confusion before shrugging and heading home. Opening the door she'd turned around and locked the door as was her habit. She'd walked into her bedroom, pulled her laptop from her backpack and plugged it into the charger before doing the same to her phone. Changing into a camisole and some lounging pants before she wandered back out of her room. She'd considered making herself a quick dinner but the thought of food made her nauseous so she'd simply sat in front of the television with a drink in her hand and tried to make her jealousy go away. She'd meant what she'd said. She may not agree with Jeff and Britta getting married. And she was honest enough with herself to realize that it wasn't only that she thought they would make each other miserable. She'd moved past her school-girl crush on Jeff but instead of leaving her entirely, her feelings had simply grown stronger over the years. There was something about Jeff Winger that electrified her. But she wasn't a child anymore. And she had to accept that he didn't reciprocate her feelings. And so, as difficult as it would be, she would fully support her friends. It had taken three Appletinis but she'd finally been tired enough to crawl in bed and fall asleep. Her last conscious thought was a wish that in the morning she would be able to let go of her lingering jealousy of Britta and focus on her own future.

That had been nearly a week ago. She hadn't spoken with anyone but Abed since then. And she'd only spoken to him in passing as she'd put all of her considerable energy and determination into aceing her finals. Her friends understood her. They knew to give her space during finals week and she appreciated that they'd been so respectful. But it was nearly over. Today was Thursday and as soon as the meeting was over she would be taking her last final for the year. This would be the last meeting of the Save Greendale Committee. With nothing holding them together, Annie was worried her friends would drift apart again. Shaking off the sad thought she pasted a cheerful smile on her face and waltzed into the room.

After the short meeting Jeff had practically run out the door and everyone else filed out more slowly. Annie took her time to make certain each of her things was in its designated space and when she was finished Britta was the only person left. Ignoring the nausea roiling through her, Annie composed herself and asked, "So Britta! Have you and Jeff decided on when you'll have the wedding?"

Britta's eyebrows drew together as she gave Annie a confused look. "Annie. Did you not hear? Jeff and I cancelled the engagement." Britta made a mental note of the way Annie's entire body sagged as she continued, "As a therapist in training I can see now that we were simply reacting negatively to the thought of losing Greendale and were grasping at a way to make an uncertain future feel like something we had control over. Jeff and I aren't in love. We're friends. We both know that. We aren't even sexually compatible. He was simply panicking and I reacted to his panic with wanting to do something to help him."

Annie couldn't describe what she was feeling. There was euphoria and fear and anger and confusion and a bone-deep relief all coursing through her. Her voice was far more steady than he thoughts as she casually replied, "No I hadn't heard. Well, are you okay with that?"

Britta smiled at her friend. "More than okay. Like I said, there are no romantic feelings there. It was simply a bad reaction to fear of change. I thought Jeff had told everyone before he left the other night. Did he not talk to you?"

Annie's smile faltered. "No. I haven't actually spoken with him since we were in the basement. I left pretty early the other night though. I must have left before he got the chance to tell me is all." Corralling her spinning thoughts and ruthlessly quashing them down she took a few deep breaths and centered herself before looking back at Britta. "Well, I have one last final before I'm officially free for the summer so I'd better go. See ya!"

As she bustled out of the room Annie missed Britta's speculative gaze on her retreating form.

* * *

Britta ran into Abed in the parking lot as she was leaving. Grinning, she trotted over to him and gave a cheery wave. "Hey Abed! I was going to text you! Listen. We need to have a party just for us now that finals are over. You mind volunteering your apartment as a location?" Abed's eyes moved with tiny movements like he was watching actual calculations line up in the air between them. It was disconcerting so she interrupted him, "I was thinking Saturday. Do you think that's enough notice? I was hoping to have everyone from the Committee except for Chang since he's a bad guy again so fuck him."

Abed nodded as he thought about the logistics. That could work with his plans. He would have to talk to Annie but she loved having everyone over and her last final was today so she wouldn't mind. Yes. This could work very well. Just had to make sure the scene was properly set and apply a little leverage at just the right moment. "Cool," he said. "Cool cool cool."


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Still don't own it. No beta. No idea where this is going. Letting this little drabble write itself.

Chapter 2

Friday morning Annie woke up naturally for the first time since spring break. Glancing at the clock she saw that it was nearly noon. Stretching luxuriously, she flung back the covers and hopped out of bed full of energy and optimism. Her stomach grumbled and she put a hand on it with a rueful grin. It may be lunchtime but the first meal of the day should always be breakfast. And she had scored a great deal on some fresh blueberries at the farmer's market last weekend. Time for some pancakes. Not even bothering to fix the messy bun her hair was in or to change out of her layered tank tops and silky blue pajama pants ,she sauntered out of her room with a song on her lips and her heart light.

As she sat at the table finishing the last bites of yummy breakfast goodness and reading the news on her tablet she heard the door open behind her. Annie waved a fork in Abed's general direction before turning around and cheerily calling out, "Roomie! Last final all done?"

Abed sniffed the air appreciatively as he dropped his backpack by the door. "Yep. You made pancakes. Are you seeing someone?"

Annie laughed at the thought as she took her plate and put it in the dishwasher. "No, they just sounded good. I'm all done but there are still some blueberries left. Want me to make you some?"

Abed responded in his usual clipped manner. "No I had an early lunch with Rachel. Hey, can we have a party here tomorrow night?"

Annie's mood immediately deflated. "Ughhh, Abed. I don't know if I'm really feeling up to hosting a party here." Annie's shoulders slumped and her whole face fell at the thought.

Abed looked at her blankly. "I don't understand," he said. "You like parties. You like it when they're at our place. Because then you can change into pyjamas anytime you want and just go to bed if you get tired and you don't have to worry about getting home if you've been drinking."

Annie gave her roommate a small half-smile. He really did listen when she talked. "I know. And normally that's true but last week I made a promise to myself and I don't want to put myself in a position to break it."

Abed's eyebrows ticked up in surprise. "You made an oath?" He leaned in with interest. "What was it?"

She considered not telling him. Unfortunately Abed was not just her roommate, but a dear friend. He was also relentless with getting details about this sort of thing. She gave in with a sigh. "I swore to myself that I would focus on my future. Just mine. That I wouldn't be concerned with what other people were doing because I needed to look out for myself first. Nobody else will so it's up to me."

Abed shook his head in sadness as he digested what she'd said. "Annie, you took a level in cynic? When did this happen? How did I miss this? This is major character development. It's not like me to miss something like this."

Annie's confusion was clear on her face. "Took a level in what now? What are you talking about?"

Abed surprised Annie by grabbing her shoulders and leaning in to peer intently into her eyes. "You have to tell me exactly how you made this decision. I have to know everything. Inner monologue. External influences. Everything. Annie, this is important."

She put a hand on his cheek and leaned in to press a gentle kiss on Abed's cheek. "If I ask you very nicely will you drop this and let me be? I'll make you blueberry pancakes for dinner tonight." Her soft pleading tone and the Disney eyes were in full effect as she tried blatant bribery to get her roommate off the scent.

Any hope she had that he would leave this alone was quickly dashed as he shook her and focused on her like a hawk. "You know I can't do that, Annie. I have to know. You have to tell me."

Rolling her eyes, she shook of his hands and moved into the living room to collapse onto the couch. Pulling her knees to her chest and resting her head on them. "Ugh fine. But here are the rules. No interruptions. No speeches. No commentary. You listen and move on with your day. Deal?"

Abed quickly agreed and moved to sit next to her on the couch. "Begin."

"Ok you remember the conversation we had in the basement? About Jeff and Britta? Well after that I made the decision that I couldn't worry about Jeff anymore. I know he cares about me. He cares about all of us. But he will never feel the way that I feel. And you know what? That's okay. I don't know if you know this but I actually asked him once. If there could ever be anything between us. I may have put it more forcefully than that but regardless. I asked him yes or no, did he want me. Do you know what he said?"

Abed opened his mouth to answer what was clearly a question but Annie made the shush gesture with her hand and continued on.

"He said he wished he could give me an answer that made sense. But obviously that was just Wingerese for 'no but I don't want to hurt your feelings, kiddo.' So I buried my feelings. Acted like it was a silly crush and that I'd gotten over it. Tried to be the friend he clearly wanted me to be. Sure, I've slipped up a time or two. Forgot to pretend I wasn't completely in love with him. But I'm done. I can accept that I'm in love with a man that thinks I'm still the same girl he met five years ago and refuses to see that I'm an adult. But I know I'm not that girl any more. And it's time for me to put on my big girl panties and go after a future where I'm alone. Because here's the deal, Abed. I'm also done pretending there's anyone out there that I will ever feel this way about. I've tried dating over the years and sure it's a fun diversion but the closest I've ever come to actually developing feelings for another guy was when you catfished me by acting like Jeff."

She paused and gave him a sharp glare, "Dick." Abed had the decency to look ashamed at the reminder.

She continued on without giving him a chance to say anything, "I left early that night. The night we found Borchert and Subway left. I left and I came back here and I had a couple of drinks and really thought about my life. Abed, I had a bright future once. And I think I still do. But the only way I'm going to find out is to stop worrying about anyone but me. Whatever you all want to do I support. If any of you need me I'll be there. But Annie Edison is done with putting herself second."

"But Annie," Abed looked puzzled. "You know Jeff and Britta cancelled the engagement, right?"

Annie smiled sadly at her friend. "I found out yesterday when Britta told me after the meeting. But this week has been so freeing, in its own way. I don't want to move backward. I won't lie and say I wasn't thrilled when I found out. But Abed, what's the point? So I'm excited he isn't getting married? That's not what a friend feels. That's awful! And besides, that's giving him too much power over me. No. I've made up my mind to remove Jeff Winger from my heart. And if that fails I'll just take my mother's example and bottle my emotions up until they might as well not even exist. I've already completed most of the requirements for my degree in Forensic Science since the gen-ed stuff I already had to do for Healthcare Management. I'm set to get my Bachelor's next spring. Then another two years for my Masters. Hickey thinks he can get me a job with the Greendale Police while I'm doing that. Then once I have my Masters I can try to get on with the Denver Police. I have a future, Abed. And I'm going to chase it. Nobody is getting in my way. Not even myself."

Abed looked at the woman in front of him. She was a hardened version of the Annie he had met. But she didn't seem bitter, merely resolute. And determined to ignore her feelings for Jeff to focus on her own dreams. Abed didn't really understand what the one had to do with the other, and he suspected Annie didn't either. But he respected her oath. "So the reason you don't want to have the party is because Jeff will be here and you're afraid you'll get too drunk to pretend you don't love him?"

Annie had almost forgotten why they'd even started talking about this. "Yeah. You know how he gets when he drinks. He's extra flirty. I can't let that affect me anymore. No more daydreaming about being with him. If I keep telling myself that I'm over Jeff Winger then eventually it'll be true."

This changed everything. Annie's entire character arc had changed in one night. The Wide Eyed Idealist was gone. In her place was a Silk Hiding Steel. This new Annie was scarier. Abed liked it. Maybe. He wasn't sure. But he thought it was probably a good thing. "So don't drink. Annie if you're this sure about your oath what possible difference will a few hours around Jeff make?"

Annie nodded in agreement. A determined look on her face. "You know what, Abed? You're right. Let's have the party. Invite Rachel, too. She's an honorary member of the Committee. Tell everyone to be here around eight tomorrow night. I'll make fajitas and see if Shirley...Actually, do you mind if I just go ahead and make the plans?"

Abed smiled at his friend. "Go right ahead. I have to take care of something anyway. Oh, but don't invite Chang." He got up from the couch and entered his room, taken over once Troy had left. He quickly pulled out his phone and sent a text to his girlfriend.

Abed: Tomorrow is on but the plan is aborted.

Rachel: Really? What changed?

Abed: Annie.

* * *

Jeff came home from work and smiled broadly. Teaching was such a racket. He had an actual summer vacation and he was still going to be paid. Sure they pay wasn't as good as what he made when he was a lawyer in a successful practice, but it was far more than he had made when he tried to strike out on his own. And so he was home by noon a beautiful Friday afternoon and he didn't have to go back to work for three months.

His phone chimed with a new text as he was in the middle of his workout. He didn't hear it over his headphones. He also didn't hear the other seven texts he received. It wasn't until he had finished working out and taken a shower that Jeff looked and saw that he has missed them. Swiping his phone open as he toweled his hair he saw that seven of them were to the whole group but one was just from Annie to him. He looked at the group texts first, wondering what was going on.

Annie: Abed and I are hosting a 'Yay Summer!' party. Our place tomorrow night at 8. We're making fajitas and margaritas. You'll all be there, right?

Shirley: Oh that's nice! I'll make dessert empanadas!

Britta: I'll be there! I'll bring vegan refried black beans.

Duncan: Exotic! I'm afraid I have no idea what to bring.

Hickey: I might show up.

Rachel: Abed told me already. I'm excited! I'll bring homemade guac and chips!

Annie: Great! Duncan just bring some soda and ice if you want. See you all tomorrow!

Jeff frowned. She hadn't exactly waited to see if he would be coming before calling everything settled. Remembering that she'd texted him separately he backed out and tapped on her name.

Annie: Do you want low carb tortillas or would you rather just have lettuce wraps? Also, I'm making real margaritas not that premixed crap and they have like 2 carbs each but if you want something else you'll need to bring it. Invite the Dean if you want. See you tomorrow if you can make it.

His frown deepened. It didn't seem like Annie cared whether he showed up or not. But then again she'd mentioned making low carb drinks and asked his preference for dinner so that was positive. He quickly typed in a reply:

Jeff: Lettuce wraps would be perfect. Thanks. I'll let Craig know if I see him.

Switching back over to the group texts he replied to everyone.

Jeff: Don't worry about buying tequila. I'll bring some with me.

Setting his phone down Jeff got dressed and flopped onto his bed. Grabbing the remote he turned on the TV and settled in to catch a marathon of the original Star Wars movies. But he couldn't stop thinking about the party the next night. He'd been avoiding Annie since he'd realized how he felt about her. But add a few drinks to the mix? Annie had a tendency to get pretty flirty when she drank. And normally he flirted back because he could pretend it didn't mean anything. But now? He still hadn't managed to lock these feelings for her back away. In fact, seeing her again yesterday afternoon had brought everything back even stronger than before. He'd had to haul ass out of the study room as soon as their meeting was over. It was that or declare himself to her like some lovestruck leading man in a stupid rom-com. And that was a terrible idea. The last time they'd actually spoken was when he'd told her he was marrying Britta, for chrissake. Beyond that, it seemed like Annie was maybe mad at him for some reason and that wasn't even kinda okay. He'd need to talk to her and see what the deal was. Maybe he was reading too much into things.

Okay so bold declarations were out. He would just be himself. Only this time he wouldn't try to put false distance between them. He would show her how he felt even if he was still too much of a chickenshit to tell her.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Still don't own it. BIG thank you to tktktk for being a lovely beta! Special nod to GoodKing0 in this chapter.

Chapter 3

Annie glanced in the mirror one last time. In deference to the heat she wore a sleeveless button-down blouse in mango with cobalt blue designs that looked like swirls from a distance but were actually little octopuses. Octopods? Octopi? Whatever. She'd paired it with a pair of pleated twill shorts in the same blue and sleek strappy wedges with coral accents that put her at a nice 5'7". She'd pulled her hair back for once and it fell from her low ponytail in long loose waves. She put the finishing touches on her makeup and gave herself a smile of approval before heading out of her room to help with dinner.

Abed looked up from where he was slicing onions. "Hey Annie. I'm almost done here but Rachel asked me to pick her up since her car needs an oil change and she hasn't gotten around to getting it done yet. I'll be back by eight. Cool?"

"No problem, sorry I took so long getting ready." she replied breezily as she opened the refrigerator and pulled out the chicken and steak she had marinating. "Did you start the grill?"

"Yep, should be about ready for the chicken. And the rice is done. Do we need anything while I'm out?" He asked as he skillfully slid the onion slivers into a bowl and washed the cutting board and knife.

Annie thought about it for a minute but couldn't think of anything they had forgotten. "Nope I think we're good. See you in an hour or so."

As Abed left she went onto their tiny balcony and the small red grill that they'd set up. The coals were perfect so she set the chicken on to cook and went back inside to start making a salad. She'd finished it and just come back inside from swapping the finished chicken for steaks when the doorbell rang. Glancing at the clock she saw that it wasn't even 7:30 yet. With a small frown she looked through the peephole, wondering if Abed had come back early. Instead she saw Jeff standing in the hallway.

God he was handsome. Even now her heart raced just seeing him. Keep it cool, Edison. Just friends, she reminded herself. She opened the door and gave Jeff a tight smile. She could do this.

When she opened the door Jeff was struck again by how beautiful Annie was. She wasn't cute anymore. She was a gorgeous woman. He gave her his most charming smile and a half bow as he held out the two bottles of Patron he'd brought. "Milady."

Her eyes tightened and she looked almost sad for a moment. It was over so quickly he thought maybe he'd only imagined it. With a polite smile she took the offered tequila. "You're early so make yourself comfortable. Abed's picking up Rachel and I'm in the middle of making dinner."

Jeff watched her walk away and couldn't help but notice how her little shorts were hugging her as she swayed with each step. He hurried to catch up with her as she walked towards the kitchen. "I'll help," he offered with a smile. "It's just us so I think I can let you in on a secret." He leaned in closer and gave her a conspirational grin before whispering, "I can cook." God she smelled good. Like orange blossoms.

Annie was momentarily overwhelmed by Jeff's closeness. Was it even fair for a man to smell so damn good? Even though she was wearing four inch heels he towered over her, making her feel delicate and feminine. For just a second she imagined stepping closer to him. Grabbing his face and pulling him into a deep kiss. Forgetting everything and dragging him to her bedroom. This was going to be harder than she'd thought.

To his surprise Annie actually closed her eyes then sighed at him before she responded curtly. "In that case you're on pepper duty," she said as she pointed to a cutting board with several peppers and a knife sitting on it. Next to it was a bowl with slivers of onion already cut up. "Just put the slices in the bowl and I'll get them started in a few minutes. I've got steaks on the grill, be back in a few."

Jeff's eyes followed Annie as she walked quickly over to the door leading to the apartment's tiny balcony and the equally tiny grill set up on one side. When she shut the door behind her he turned to the peppers sitting out. She was acting so indifferent. Had he done or said something to piss her off? He hadn't even talked to her in over a week. What was going on with Annie?

Annie shut the door behind her and sagged against it as she released a ragged breath. Damn his charming, handsome face. The evening hadn't even started and she was already having a hard time not responding to Jeff. Gripping the plate she carried more firmly in her hands she checked the steaks and turned them over to finish cooking. She had about five minutes before they would be done. She took several more deep breaths. Was he being more charming than usual or was it that she was so determined to keep him at arm's length? Closing her eyes she gave herself a mental pep talk. Get it together, Edison. He's your friend. He's also naturally charming and sexy and forceful. But you don't have to respond. It's not fair to think about being with him because you're just fooling yourself. He doesn't mean anything by it. Even if he did hit on you you'd be a diversion for him at best. Focus on your own future because you don't have one with Jeff Winger. She managed to talk down her libido and calm her chaotic thoughts just as the steaks were finishing up. She snagged them with the tongs and piled them on the plate to bring back inside. With a last reminder to herself to focus on her future and firm nod she slid the glass open and walked back in. "So!" she said with false enthusiasm. "How are those peppers coming along?"

Before Jeff could respond the doorbell rang again and Annie set the plate on the counter before running to answer it. From the kitchen Jeff hear a cheerful, "Ring a Dean Dean Dean!" and rolled his eyes. He liked Craig but the man was early and Jeff hadn't had a chance to actually talk to Annie yet.

"Dean! I'm so glad you could make it!" Annie was beyond grateful to have someone else here.

"Now now, Annie. School is out! I insist that you call me Craig. We're friends, after all." Craig said as he walked farther into the small apartment. Seeing Jeff he smiled broadly, "Jeffrey! Thank you again for telling me about this evening! I knocked on your door before I left thinking we could ride together but I must have just missed you! And look at you two. Cooking a meal together. So cozy! I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

Both Jeff and Annie immediately said "No!" before giving each other a quizzical look. Jeff's no was a bit harsh and Annie's a bit frantic. But they were saved from any further comments by the doorbell ringing again. In fact they didn't get another chance to talk to each other alone before the apartment was full of their friends.

* * *

After the last of the dishes from their leisurely dinner had long been cleared away and the third pitcher of margaritas had been consumed over laughs and stories they moved into the living room and Abed pulled out two movies. "Tonight we can choose between two quintessential summer vacation movies, National Lampoon's Vacation and The Sandlot."

Britta loudly claimed The Sandlot and they all piled around the TV. Jeff tried to sit next to Annie on the couch but before he got the chance she'd pulled Craig down next to her. With a grimace he sat on the Dean's other side and settled in to watch the movie.

Britta wobbled to her feet after about fifteen minutes and made her way into the kitchen. Once there she loudly started rooting around in the cupboards. Annie smiled at her in sober bemusement before calling over to her, "Looking for anything in particular?"

Britta didn't stop her search and just called out, "Shot glasses! We need to do shots! It's summer, damnit!"

Duncan heard her and shouted his approval. "Shots! Splendid idea!"

Rachel and Abed shared a quick look and on the same page started called out, "Drinking game!"

Surprisingly, the Dean also took up the chant. "Shots shots shots!"

Annie capitulated with a smile and walked over to reach above Britta's head to snag the stack of glasses that the blond had somehow missed in her search. Grabbing the second bottle of tequila Jeff had brought and a glass of water for herself she settled back on the couch before setting everything on the coffee table.

Rachel grabbed the bottle and poured everyone a shot. "Okay everyone. Sandlot drinking game. Here are the rules. Take a shot for every time someone mentions Babe Ruth, any time someone scores a point, and any time the ball goes over the fence. Any questions?"

Shirley refused the shot glass offered to her but stayed to watch the movie. Hickey said he was too damn old to drink just to get drunk but this movie was a bit of a soft spot for him so he stayed as well. Annie had been drinking only water all night but at this point everyone else was too deep in their cups to really notice when she only sipped from her shot glass and never refilled it.

Jeff wanted to beg off but when both Britta and Duncan ganged up on him he gave in and started taking shots with everyone else. He wasn't going to get the chance to talk to Annie tonight anyway.

* * *

Both the movie and the tequila were nearly done and Jeff had a hell of a buzz. Britta and Duncan were whispering quietly to one another. Aww that was kinda sweet. Both Shirley and Buzz were watching the movie with little smiles on their faces. Abed and Rachel were watching intently and whispering to each other occasionally. Blearily Jeff turned to see if Craig was sober enough to drive since he would probably need to get a ride home. Surprisingly the Dean was curled up on the couch in Annie's vacant seat, sound asleep. Wait, where the hell was Annie?

Jeff craned his head looking for her and saw her in kitchen getting a glass of water. She tipped the glass back and took a long swallow. He was mesmerized by the action. He lurched off of the couch and stalked over to her, his movements slow and deliberate with inebriation. He walked right up to Annie, caging her between his body and the counter. Ever her surprised little squeak was hot. She looked up at him and her eyes seemed nervous. Why was his Annie acting so weird? He had to know. It had been bothering him so much he hadn't slept much the night before. It had been why he'd shown up early that evening. And it had been even worse once he got to her place earlier. She acted like she didn't even want to be around him. He couldn't go another minute without making sure they were okay.

"Annie I need to talk to you." He said as he stared at her intently.

Annie cleared her throat nervously. Jeff was clearly drunk but even so, his closeness made her skin feel hot. Friends. Remember that you're just friends. "Sure thing, pal. What do you need?"

Pal? What the hell was that? No matter. "Annie you've been acting weird. Are you mad at me? Did I do something I need to apologize for? Just let me know and I'll make it right. Promise."

He looked confused and sad and it softened Annie's heart just a little bit. Maybe she had been putting too much distance between them. Just because she was determined not to let herself be in love with him didn't mean she had to drive him away entirely. She had overreacted because it was easier for her. But clearly Jeff had not just noticed, but he was deeply bothered by her change in attitude. She looked up at him and smiled gently. "No, Jeff. You didn't do anything. I'm not mad at you. I promise."

He didn't believe her. Something had to be going on. His Annie would never intentionally marginalize him like she had done all evening. He'd watched her as she interacted with everyone. She was warm and gracious and gave whoever she was listening to her full attention. Everyone but him. Whenever she'd even looked at him, which was rare, she'd looked frustrated and mad. Shit, had she figured out his secret? Did she know he was in love with her? Had he been that obvious? Maybe not, his tequila-soaked brain reasoned. Maybe it was still okay. If it wasn't something he did then maybe the deal was with her. Maybe there was just something going on with her. Maybe something was wrong. "Then why have you been acting like we're strangers? You haven't been yourself lately. Is there something going on? Do you need help? I'd do anything for you. You just have to tell me what you want."

What she wanted was to hop up on the counter and pull him between her legs. What she wanted was to twine her arms behind his neck and feast on his kisses for a year or two. What she wanted was to find out what it felt like to be completely filled with Jeff Winger. What she wanted was to confess her feelings. But what she needed was to get over this and think about her future. What she needed was to extricate herself from this situation before she lost the fierce hold she had on the last threads of her resistance.

But he looked so worried for her. He really did care, just not in the way she needed. She put a hand on his cheek and softly told him, "I'm fine, Jeff. There's nothing wrong with me. And we're friends still. Promise."

Jeff nuzzled into her hand and fit his body to hers. She felt so damn good. His train of thought ran away from him and he started babbling. "Good. Had me worried. Thought you figured it out and didn't want me around anymore." He leaned in and his lips brushed her ear as he continued in a smoky growl. "Glad we're okay. Take what I can get. Can't scare me like that, k?"

Annie pulled back from him and narrowed her eyes. Her voice was strident and she pushed him away from her. "Figured what out, Jeff? What the hell are you talking about?"

But Jeff was too drunk to really process what she was asking. He laughed and wagged a finger in her face "Nope. Tricky Annie with your giant smart brain. Can't make me tell you. If I tell you then you might run away from me. Can't take that risk so you. can't. know." This last part he said with a smug smile as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Annie had a decision to make. She could respect his privacy, put him in a cab and send him home right now. Or she could push and try to figure out whatever his drunk brain was trying to hide from her. She looked down, unable to keep looking at his stupid handsome face. As her eyes traced down his body they landed on the impressive bulge in his jeans. Oh. Oh that was nice. That was very nice. Wait a minute, THIS was he was hiding? So Jeff wasn't with Britta anymore and wanted to sleep with her? He really did have the worst timing in the world. A year ago, hell two weeks ago she would have listened to her libido and climbed that man like a tree. But that was before. If she were honest with herself she was tempted. God was she tempted. Even one night together with him. One night for her to show him all the things she'd never get to say. One night to throw caution to the wind and take what she'd always wanted and was finally being offered. But if she did she'd be just another notch on Jeff Winger's headboard. And Annie deserved better than that. She had to stop this right now. There was only one thing to do. "Jeff I figured it out. And I'm not interested." Lie. Big lie. Huge. "You're drunk," she continued calmly. "It's time for you to leave." She stepped around him and walked briskly towards her room to grab her phone and call him a cab.

Jeff's heart dropped. She wasn't interested. She'd figured out his secret and she wasn't interested. Shit. He had ruined his chance. Why the hell had he agreed to a stupid drinking game? This was exactly what he'd been trying to avoid and now he'd chased her away. He followed her in desperation. "Annie, don't leave me! ...I love you!" Fuck. That was the thing he wasn't supposed to say. Oh what the hell did it matter now? She already knew and she wasn't interested in him. She'd said it herself.

Neither of them heard the shocked gasps of their friends in the living room as everyone turned to watch the drama play out.

If she'd turned around right then she would have seen the naked emotion on his face. The love that he'd finally accepted. Fear that he'd just ruined everything. But she didn't. She couldn't risk him seeing how much his words had hurt her.

She stormed into her room, hoping he'd take the hint and leave her the hell alone but he stubbornly followed her. She whirled around to face him before he made it past the doorway. "You know what, Jeff Winger? No. You don't get to say that. I get that you're horny and you're not with Britta anymore but I'm nobody's consolation prize and I will not be manipulated with cheap words. What the hell is wrong with you!?"

"Annie, wait!" He sputtered. "Look, all I'm asking for is a chance." He wobbled a bit and leaned against the door-frame for support. Blinking a few times as he tried to figure out how to fix this. "I know we're friends. But I don't want to just be friends anymore. I want to be more than friends." He looked at her again. Confusion plain on his face. "I thought you wanted that, too."

Annie's eyes were softer now as she looked at him. Really she could understand his confusion. Their chemistry was so strong sometimes she was surprised she couldn't actually see it arc between them. Of course he would assume she would want to sleep with him. She gave herself a quick mental pep talk. Stay strong, Annie. Remember. Friends. Not friends with benefits. Just friends. She sighed and moved to stand in front of him. "Jeff we can still be friends. But I'm not interested in what you're offering." She stood up straighter and looked him in the eyes. In a firm voice she said, "I think it's time for you to leave. I can't be around you right now." She gently pushed him through the doorway and closed the door in his face before turning the lock with a loud click that echoed in the silence of the apartment.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: **Hey! Listen! **I made significant changes to the end of chapter 3 just before posting this. Because tktktk is a good and kind beta who helps me when I can't words good. Still don't own it.

Chapter 4

Jeff groaned as he stared at the door that she'd just slammed in his face. He'd royally fucked this up and now he'd lost Annie before he even got a chance to try and win her. He leaned in and dropped his head against the door. Now what was he supposed to do?

He was pulled out of his reverie by a hand on his shoulder. He jumped, startled by the intrusion. He looked at Craig's face, sad and sympathetic.

"Come on, Jeffrey. I'll take you home." The Dean's voice was soft and understanding.

Jeff looked from Craig to Annie...make that Annie's door, and back. "I fucked up, Craig," he raggedly whispered.

The Dean smiled sadly. "It looks that way, yes, but maybe things will be clearer in the morning. For both of you. Now come on, loverboy. It's time for us to go."

Jeff turned away from the door slowly and saw that everyone was staring at him. He closed his eyes. He couldn't even look at them right now. When Craig took his arm and led him out of the apartment, he didn't resist. He wasn't welcome here anyway.

After the door closed everyone left in the living room looked at each other in shock. Duncan was the first one to find his voice. "Well I guess I'll just say it. What. The HELL. Was that?"

Hickey jumped in before anyone else could respond. "None of our damn business. Don't get involved," He warned with a stern look around. He looked at everyone again and sighed in resignation. "Oh who am I kidding? You busybodies never leave well enough alone. Well don't even think about involving me. I'm going home." And with that he took his leave.

Shirley stared after Hickey as he stalked purposefully out of the apartment. She knew he was probably right but were they supposed to just pretend they hadn't seen anything? Not in this lifetime. Into the awkward silence she said, "Well I'm proud of our little Annie. She's had a cute little crush on that man for a long time and was still strong enough to stand up for herself. That little girl has more steel in her spine than I thought. But I agree with Buzz. It's past time for us to go. Come on Ian, I'll drop you home since you're on my way. Does anyone else need a ride?" Britta and Rachel shook their heads no and watched as Shirley hustled a still inebriated Duncan out the door.

That left Rachel, Abed, and Britta sitting in the living room. Stunned by what they'd seen. Abed was shaking his head sadly. "He made a mistake. Didn't know all the facts. Was working with outdated information."

Rachel patted his hand in sympathy. "I know. Listen. I had planned on asking you for a ride home but I think I'm just going to crash in your room. Is that okay?"

Abed nodded absently as Rachel went into his room and shut the door behind her. He looked up and saw that Britta was staring at him. "You're still here. You have something to say. What is it?"

Britta nodded insistently as she finally released the dam that had been holding her words at bay. "Abed, I think Annie still likes Jeff! Why would she turn him down like that if she likes him? It doesn't make any sense! Him I understand." She mimicked a caveman. "Jeff get drunk. Jeff want lady." She took a minute and her brows drew down in confusion. "But, why would Annie yell at him like that? You didn't see her when I told her that he and I weren't getting married. She was so obviously relieved and happy. What would make her turn him down now? What am I missing?"

Abed thought back to his conversation with Annie the day before. She hadn't told him not to tell anyone, but maybe he shouldn't say anything. Better to double check. He'd learned that Annie didn't like anyone repeating things she said in confidence. "Really couldn't say. Do you need me to call you a cab or are you sleeping on the couch?" He asked.

"Really, Abed? Really? Major drama literally just happened and you're going to bed? You don't have any theories? Come oooon," she whined. "Are you really going to just leave me here with no one to discuss this with?"

"Yes," he said. And he stood up to go to his room. Before he went in he turned again and shot a stern look at the blond on the couch. "Annie locked her door. We're not supposed to bother her if her door is locked."

Britta narrowed her eyes at him. What the hell did he know anyway? Leave her alone? Shah. That girl needed a friend right now. A friend who understood the human mind and who understood Jeff Winger. Annie clearly needed her right now. Abed just didn't get it.

Abed saw the resolution on her face. "It's one of the rules."

Britta groaned and threw up her hands dramatically. "Fine! I won't talk to her tonight. But I'm sleeping on your couch, and I'm not going to give her the silent treatment in the morning."

Abed nodded. "I accept your compromise. Good night."

Britta went to the closet and grabbed the 'guest' linens that Annie always had ready to go before stretching out on the couch. What a crazy night!

* * *

In her room Annie was curled up on her bed with a pillow clutched to her stomach. She bitterly regretted getting rid of all of her stuffies that week as a part of her resolution to put away childish things. She'd washed her face and brushed her teeth and gotten dressed for bed on autopilot. Shell-shocked by what had just happened. Jeff had thrown the three words she'd always longed to hear at her in some drunken attempt to get in her pants. He was disgusting. She should hate him.

But every time she got herself worked up to a good anger she remembered how sad and lost he'd looked when he'd asked her if she was mad at him. She sighed and hugged the pillow tighter. This was really her fault. She'd gone too far with keeping him at arm's length and he'd been too drunk to understand what was going on. He'd looked so pathetically happy when she'd assured him she wasn't mad at him.

But no! He had been gross! How dare he treat her like some pathetic groupie ready to jump in bed with a few sweet words! No. She was right to be angry. She was just thankful she hadn't been drinking all night like everyone else. "If you had been, you'd be in bed with Jeff right now instead of a crying alone in the dark," a treacherous voice in her head whispered spitefully. "Would that really have been so bad? It's what you've always wanted and you threw it in his face. And for what?" Annie grimaced. Her doubts and fears had always been particularly vicious. "For self respect," she whispered into the silent darkness of her room. "For my future."

* * *

Jeff slowly woke up to the smell of coffee and bacon. Blearily he groped for his phone and checked the time. It was only ten in the morning. Who the hell was in his kitchen? He disentangled himself from his twisted sheets and frowned when he saw he was still wearing the jeans and t-shirt he'd worn the night before.

Oh god the night before! It all came back in one big embarrassing rush and he collapsed back onto his bed. Annie had rejected him. He groaned and buried his head in his pillow. She knew he was in love with her and she hadn't cared. She'd been so cruel. He started to curl up and try to escape by going back to sleep when a stern voice called from his doorway.

"None of that, mister. You need to get up. Come on, Jeffrey. I made you breakfast! You'll feel better after you eat something."

The Dean's voice was just about the last thing he'd expected to hear and the surprise of it made him forget his misery for a moment. He lifted his head and threw the smaller man a confused look. "Craig? What the hell are you doing here?"

The Dean gave a sympathetic smile. "Well after last night's little show I figured you'd need a good listener this morning, and I'm a very good listener."

"No," Jeff clarified. "I mean how the hell did you get into my apartment?"

"Ohh that." Craig said. "Well I did drive you home last night and since I couldn't lock the door without your keys I just kept them with me! Nothing to concern yourself with. Now come on. Up and at 'em! I made breakfast and it's getting cold."

With a final huff Jeff got out of bed and followed the Dean out of his bedroom and wow that's not a thought he ever imagined he'd have. Shaking his head in bemusement he sat down on one of the stools at the breakfast bar. Glancing around he saw that Craig had made a full breakfast spread. There was a giant egg-white omelet, fruit, a mountain of bacon, and most welcome of all a steaming mug of coffee. He took a sip and looked at the other man in surprise. "This is perfect...eerily perfect... How did you know I take my coffee with cinnamon and three splenda?"

The Dean turned away and said, "Nevermind that right now, Jeffrey. You need to eat away that hangover. Now don't be shy." He put his hand to the side of his mouth as if he were telling a secret, "I've already had my morning smoothie. So eat whatever you want."

"Okay I get how you got in but why are you here? Why are you doing this?"

Craig gave him an understanding nod. "Jeffrey I like to think that we're friends. And friends support each other. From what I saw last night it seems like you could use a little support. That's all."

Nodding absently, still unsure what exactly was happening. Jeff loaded up his plate and took a bite of the surprisingly delicious omelet. His appetite hit him quickly and with a full mouth he said, "This is really good."

The Dean gave him an indulgent smile and waved off the compliment. "It was no bother. Now you finish that all up and take a shower. No offense, Jeffrey, but you smell like a tequila distillery."

After a shower and with a full stomach Jeff really did feel much better physically. Of course without his physical misery to distract him he focused on the colossal ass he'd made of himself the previous night. He padded into the living room and fell into his favorite chair. The Dean was sitting on the couch and there was another cup of coffee on the end table by Jeff's elbow. Taking a sip he stared blankly at the Dean.

"Are you ready to talk?" Craig asked gently. "Because I'm ready to listen."

"What is there to talk about?" Jeff asked bitterly. Ugh why bother to deny it? Everyone had watched him get rejected. It's not like it was a secret. "Turns out Annie isn't interested in me. Seems pretty clear. No need to go over all the gory details."

"Jeffrey. I don't think things are as bad as all that. Now why don't you tell me what happened between the two of you?" Craig was gentle but insistent.

With a sigh Jeff put the coffee down and ran his hands over his face. "Umm well? Okay. Some of it's a bit fuzzy because, you know, tequila. But basically I was talking to Annie because she'd been acting like she was mad at me all night. I just wanted to see if I had done something to make her angry. Because we were supposed to be friends."

Jeff realized he never had found out what Annie's deal had been. Her odd behavior had been overshadowed by him being a jackass. But he was still worried. Annie meant everything to him and he hated the thought that she was troubled by something. He hated those little lines between her eyebrows whenever she was worried or stressed. He always wanted to smooth them away.

He remembered his train of thought and continued. "And then my dumb drunk mouth ran away from me. I must have let it slip that I wanted to be more than friends with her. Cause one minute she was being sweet and telling me we were okay and the next she was mad as hell." He looked at Craig ruefully. "Truthfully that part's a little fuzzy."

He gave a sad smile and took a sip of coffee before continuing. "The next thing I remember is her telling me she knew how I felt about her and wasn't interested. I got a little desperate and told her that I loved her." Jeff groaned in mortification. "God I can't believe I told her that! Umm then I tried to get her to let me in her room to talk and that's when she threw me out."

"See now that's the part I don't really understand. Why would you tell her you loved her?" Craig's face was perfectly innocent.

Jeff closed his eyes in defeat. He picked up his mug and mumbled into it, "BecauseI'minlovewithher."

"I'm sorry, Jeffrey. I didn't catch that last bit?" Craig was having a very hard time hiding his smile but years of working in Academia had taught him how to conceal his amusement at people who were trying to hide things from him.

Jeff glared at the man on his couch. What was Craig's deal, anyway? Why was he being so insistent? Oh yeah. Because they were supposed to be friends. And really, if he were being honest. They were friends. He sighed and spoke more clearly. "Because I'm in love with her."

"Oh Jeffrey. You sure made a mess of things, didn't you?" Craig asked.

"Hey!" Jeff argued. "Aren't you supposed to be making me feel better right now? Friend? How about a little support?"

"Fine," Craig retorted. "Jeff, I think Annie is a bitch"

Jeff saw red. How dare he say that about her! "Hey! This is my fault! Not hers!" He was interrupted by Craig's soft chuckles. Oh. "Point taken. I don't hate her and I don't want you to either. Are you happy now?" Jeff asked sarcastically.

"Not yet," Craig responded enigmatically. "But we're not talking about me. We're talking about you. What else do you remember about last night?"

Jeff thought about it for a minute. He remembered how she'd looked up at him when she assured him they were okay. Before he screwed everything up. How they'd fit together so perfectly which shouldn't be possible given how short she was but didn't make it any less perfect. He remembered watching her laugh at something Hickey had said and thinking to himself that he wanted to hear her laugh more often.

He remembered her telling a story about something that had happened to her and Abed at the farmer's market and smiling because she was way too excited about blueberries and how he wanted to make sure she always had blueberries around since she loved them so much.

"That's pretty much it. Wait. I was worried that she was mad at me before I ever got there. We hadn't talked in a week when she texted to invite everyone over and she seemed not to care whether I would be able to make it or not. I got there early to try to talk to her but she was busy making dinner and when I offered to help she put me to work and went out to sit by the grill. Then you got there. I tried all night to find a chance to talk to her but she didn't give me a chance."

Jeff took another sip of coffee while he tried to recall everything. "So when we were watching the movie and Ian and Britta were pushing shots, I figured since I wasn't going to get to talk to her anyway there was no need to stay sober."

"Well," Craig said. "We know where at least one mistake was made last night then."

Jeff pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes at the Dean. "Yeah. Thanks. Figured that one out for myself."

Craig only gave that infuriating little laugh again. Like he knew something Jeff didn't which was impossible so he was just being an ass. "Okay Jeffrey. Let me ask you this. Are you giving up on Annie, then?"

Jeff thought about that. "Uhh I don't think you get it, Craig. She was very clear that she isn't interested in me and that she wants him to stay away from her."

"That's not what I asked you. I asked if you are giving up." Craig reminded him. "Do you want to give up on Annie? Do you not want to be with her anymore? You claim to be in love with her but it seems like you're giving up pretty quickly. Is this not that important to you, then?"

Oh. Huh. "I guess I didn't think there was any point since I gave her my heart and she punted it out the window...but to answer your question, no. No, I don't want to give up. I'm in love with her and I know that if she gave me a chance we could make each other happy." Like, a forever kind of happy. But Jeff wasn't ready to tell anyone about that.

The Dean smiled broadly at that. "Excellent! That's what I wanted to hear! I'll admit I was a little worried when Jeff Winger was going to give up without a fight. Thought maybe I didn't know you at all! But since you're still in the fight I have a few things to say to you. And you really need to listen because I'm dropping pearls of wisdom here, okay?" Craig looked at him expectantly. Clearly expecting a response.

"Sure." Jeff said in a flat tone.

"Okay! First. You said you talked to her and she had assured you that you two were okay before something made her angry, right? Well, Drunky McSkunky, I bet you said something that made her mad."

Jeff rolled his eyes. "Maybe? Probably? I don't know."

"Moving on," Craig said with a wave of his hand. "And Jeffrey this is the important one. Prior to last night had you ever given Annie any indication that you had actual romantic feelings for her? I'm not talking about the cutesy caper, flirting junk. I mean have the two of you ever gone on a date or had an actual serious conversation about your feelings?"

Jeff blushed a little at that. "Well, no. Not actually. I mean yeah kinda. Once. It was years ago. She put me on the spot and asked me if I wanted her or not."

"Mmhmm. And what did you say to her?" Craig asked, fully embodying his new role as therapist. It was like Britta 2.0.

Ugh. Truth. "I hedged. Didn't answer the question. She got mad and left."

"Jeffrey, did you love her then?"

"That's hard to say. Yes, I loved her. No, I didn't realize it."

Craig interrupted him, "Didn't realize it? Jeffrey when, exactly, did you realize you were in love with Annie?"

Jeff shifted uncomfortably in his chair and looked down at his lap before speaking hesitantly. "It was umm last week. When we were in that computer lab."

The Dean shot Jeff a disappointed glare but the other man didn't see. "Let me do the math here, hmm? So last night was the first time you'd actually talked to Annie since you realized you were in love with her? And then you got drunk? And THEN you told her you loved her? Jeffrey no wonder she got mad at you. Try to look at it from her perspective!"

"I know!" Jeff yelled! "I screwed up, okay? Is that what you want to hear? Yes. Jeff Winger screwed up. With a woman. With THE woman. There. I admit it. Let's all point and laugh at Jeff making an ass out of himself. Hahaha it's so friggin funny look at the loser!"

But Craig had no sympathy for the man before him. "Feel better? Hmm? Or do you still want to wallow in this for a bit. I can come back in a few days if you want."

"Can it, Craig." Jeff snarled. "You're not subtle. I see what you're doing here."

"Oh?" The Dean asked with a quirked eyebrow. "And what is that exactly?"

Jeff rolled his eyes. Fine. "You're pointing out to me that this is all my fault. Thanks for that by the way. I had NO idea until you-"

"Focus, Jeffrey!" The Dean interrupted. "Yes, yes, you screwed up. We get it. Well news flash. You're not the first man to screw up with a woman and you won't be the last. No, what's important now is what are you going to do about it? You said you weren't ready to give up on her yet. So, mister smartypants. What's your plan?"


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Still don't own it. BIG thank you to tktktk for being a lovely beta!

Chapter 5.

Annie woke up far too early. Her dreams had been plagued by images of herself tearfully confessing her love to Jeff over and over as he'd laughed at her and told her she was only good for a little fun. That nobody would ever actually fall in love with a pushy control freak like her. She briefly considered trying to go back to sleep but she knew it was useless. She never was able to go back to sleep once she woke up. And the last thing she wanted was to give her subconscious more opportunity to torment her with her fears.

She took a quick shower, applied minimal makeup, and spritzed on a touch of perfume. After tidying her room she stood in front of her closet and snagged a silky crossover tank with bold black and white horizontal stripes. She paired it with a cute pair of black shorts with a black lace overlay and a some white sandals. The bracing shower had helped her calm her torturous thoughts. On reflection she was proud of her self-control but terrified she'd gone too far. That she'd made a huge mistake in turning Jeff down. Yes, Jeff had insulted her and was a giant jerk who clearly didn't think as much of her as she'd hoped he did. And what was important was that she had fought her urges and won. But would she always wonder now what might have happened if she hadn't reacted so badly?

At some point she would have to have an actual conversation with him about what had happened, though. If he even remembered. He had been clearly drunk. But even the thought of talking to him made her mad all over again. How dare he treat her so disrespectfully! So yes they should talk, but maybe not for a few days. Or weeks. Or months.

She opened her bedroom door and stumbled back a few feet in shock. Britta was standing right in front of her door with a notepad and purple pen in her hands.

"Finally!" Britta greeted her with entirely too much energy. "Abed wouldn't let me talk to you last night. Something about it being against the rules since your door was locked but I stayed over because we're friends and I knew you would need me this morning. I heard your hair-dryer so I knew you were up. Are you ready to talk or do you need coffee or something first? I already had like three cups of coffee so if you're ready to start then I'm ready to start. Are you ready to start? Let's start. Come on."

Britta pushed past Annie into her room and sat down in the middle of her neatly made bed, opening the notepad and poising her pen over the paper. She looked up at Annie and her brow crinkled when she saw the other woman hadn't moved. "So. Coffee then? Thought you were a morning person. There's some left if you need it."

Annie's eyes had glazed over a bit when Britta's energetic speech started to run together but she was catching back up. Britta wanted to therapize her. That was sweet but totally unnecessary. "Britta, there's nothing to talk about."

Britta dropped her notebook and pen in surprise and gave Annie a knowing look. "I think we both know that's not true. I know what I saw last night, Annie. And honestly I'm confused. I think you're probably confused, too." She looked down at the notebook and sighed before looking at the younger woman again. "Hey, this can be off the record if you'd prefer but it really would help to talk to someone about it. If you'd let me I'd like that someone to be me. We don't always agree on everything but you really are one of my best friends. I want to be here for you."

Wow that was actually pretty thoughtful. If misguided. Annie gave her friend a sad smile. "Britta, no offense. But I don't need to talk about what happened. Yes it was unfortunate, but it's over and hopefully won't ever happen again. I'm not going to dwell on it and I would take it as a personal favor if you didn't either."

"Yeah," Britta said. "But what exactly did happen?"

"You were there," Annie said harshly. "Jeff tried to hook up with me and when I turned him down he tried using the old 'I love you' gambit. Like saying that to me even when he clearly didn't mean it would make me change my mind. Like I'm some dizzy barfly bimbo without a scrap of self-respect."

Britta processed what the other woman had said and the way she had said it. It sounded like she was more upset that he had tossed out the I love you than she was about him trying to sleep with her. And in that moment Britta had a flash of intuition. Though because she rarely had these she didn't recognize it for such at the time. Only later would she wonder at how quickly she had made the connection. "Oh, Annie. This isn't about Jeff at all, is it? This is about you."

It was Britta's quick grasp of why Annie was actually upset that made her change her mind about talking. Holding up a finger for the blond to hang on for a moment, she went into the kitchen and made herself a cup of coffee. She added a touch of her precious blueberry cobbler creamer and went back into her room to sit next to her friend.

"Here's the deal." Annie started after taking a sip of coffee. She held it carefully in her hands and stared at it as she talked. "I have feelings for Jeff."

Britta nodded sagely. "I figured as much. No offense, Annie, but you're not that great at hiding your body language. When you found out he and I weren't getting married it was pretty obvious you were like, extra relieved."

Annie threw her a quick side-eye. "Yeah, well. My feelings for Jeff are strong. Like really strong. Like. Really strong. But he doesn't feel like that about me. And he never will. And it's high time I get over him and focus on my future. Britta, I don't really have a relationship with my family. If I want to succeed in this world I'm going to have to do it all on my own. And that's fine. I can handle it. I've been on my own since I was a senior in high school. I kicked Adderall on my own. I got my GED on my own. I graduated from college on my own. I had to. Most people have a support network they know they can fall back on if their life gets bad enough or hard enough. Well I hit my lowest point when I was 18 and I've clawed my way back from that without and help from anyone."

She paused for a moment before adding, "Except for Pierce. Pierce was a lot of things, Britta. But he was the only one who took care of me. He genuinely cared about me and made sure I was okay."

"Pierce?" Britta interrupted sarcastically. "Annie I know you don't think of yourself of naive but come on. He didn't care about anyone but himself. I know he supposedly left Troy millions but I'll believe it when I see it."

Annie was quickly incensed. She set her mug on the coaster sitting on her nightstand a bit more harshly than she'd intended. It splashed over and while normally she would have cleaned it up right away in that moment she was too angry. She turned and pierced the blond with a furious glare.

"You're wrong! And I can prove it! You know that tiara he bequeathed to me? Yeah well out of curiosity I had it appraised. He wasn't lying about it. Britta, it's old. Like really old. Like late 1700's old. The appraiser thinks it could go for as much as half a million dollars if I ever decide to auction it off. Pierce made sure that if I ever hit a point in my life where I have no where else to turn that I won't end up back out on the streets!"

Tears welled up in her eyes at the reminder of Pierce's unexpected generosity. "He did more for me than any other person in my entire life. And I can never thank him for that because he was gone before I found out what he had really done. So don't you ever say anything bad about that man. Not in front of me."

Britta sat in stunned silence. She'd had no idea. None of them had. "Annie why didn't you tell us? And more importantly why haven't you sold the tiara?" She gestured around her head wildly. "Why are you still living here and going to school at Greendale?"

Annie set her jaw and narrowed her eyes. "Because I've done everything on my own for years and I'm not about to stop now. Yes if I ever hit rock bottom again I have a safety net. But I intend to pass that tiara down to a child of my own someday. It deserves to stay with family."

Britta was properly chastised and impulsively reached over to envelop the other woman in a tight hug. "I'm sorry," she said into her ear before easing back so that they were facing each other again. "I had no idea. I promise I won't ever say anything bad about Pierce again. You're right. He wasn't as selfish as I thought he was. But that still doesn't answer my original question. What the hell happened last night? I mean if you feel that strongly about Jeff why did you turn him down like that?"

Annie tried to explain her own snarled and wayward thoughts. "Honestly I can't really even explain it to myself. All I know is that I need to focus on me. And I can't do that if I'm pining after Jeff. It's pathetic and I'm not going to be pathetic anymore."

Britta narrowed her eyes at her friend in disapproval. "Annie, love isn't pathetic. It's one of the things that most people try to find their whole lives."

"Yeah?" Annie retorted. "And how's that working out for all of us? Besides. It's not like I'm even in a relationship with Jeff. He doesn't DO relationships. He does casual. Look at me, Britta. Is there anything even remotely casual about me?"

Britta took in the brunette's perfectly coordinated outfit, flawless makeup & hair, meticulous room. Nope. Nothing casual here. Fair point.

She was prevented from continuing when they heard the front door open and close again. "Annie?" Abed called from the living room. "Are you up yet?"

"We're in here!" Annie called out.

A moment later Abed appeared in the doorway. "Girl talk session. Classic post-drama action. I'll leave you be."

He didn't get any further before Annie hopped of the bed and ran over to nearly smother him with a fierce bear hug.

He looked down at her head buried in his chest and patted her shoulder. "Still upset about last night, I take it?" He asked flatly.

Annie nodded into his chest and mumbled so that he could barely make out what she was saying. "Oh God Abed it was so hard and so awful and what if I made a huge mistake?"

Britta watched with interest as Abed continued to pat Annie's shoulder and back. She couldn't make out what they were saying to each other but it was clear that they were much better friends than she'd thought they were. And since when did Abed know how to calm down an upset woman?

It took a few minutes for Annie to compose herself again then Annie was dragging her roommate over to sit on the bed with them. "Britta knows everything." She pulled up short and turned to the blond. "Actually, you haven't told me what you think about this. Did I do the right thing?"

Britta nodded sagely. "You put your own self-worth above a night of at-best average sex with a narcissist. Yeah. You did the right thing."

"Actually," Abed surprised the women by interrupting. "I don't know if we can be sure what Jeff was trying to do last night. We don't have access to his inner monologue. And he was drunk."

"Umm no offence, but I know Jeff Winger," Britta said. "Annie I assure you that you're right. He was trying to score and you blocked his attempt." She paused abruptly and pulled her phone from her pocket before smiling and getting up off of the bed. "Listen, I'm going to go bring Ian some breakfast and drive him back over here to get his car. But Annie if you need to talk more later just text me, okay?"

Annie nodded at the blond's retreating back. Well that was interesting. Since when did Britta call Duncan by his first name? Abed recognized the look on her face and filled her in. "That's the B Plot. You didn't notice because you're in the A Plot but that's a thing that's going to happen."

Once they'd heard the front door open and close again Abed looked at Annie with his head cocked to the side. "How are you really? Do you need more comfort and understanding?"

Annie grabbed his hand and held it tight. Stuff like this didn't come naturally to her friend and she appreciated that he made the effort for her. "I think I'm going to be okay. I mean yeah that was a crappy way to find out exactly what Jeff thinks of me but maybe that's exactly what needed to happen in order for me to get over him."

"I can only tell you what I've seen in movies and on TV but I don't think Jeff is quite that one dimensional of a character. We've seen that there's more to him than what he tries to display. If Jeff apologizes or tries to talk to you I think you need to listen. You can't ignore him completely. Not if you want to be the person you say you want to be. Silk Covering Steel isn't bitter or intentionally cruel. Just resolute and capable."

She groaned and collapsed to bury her head in her pillow. It was so annoying when Abed was right. She flopped over and glared at him. "I have no idea what you just said but you're probably right. I don't have to like it, though. And I'm not texting him. If he wants to be friends again and make things right he needs to prove to me that he doesn't see me just as an object.

* * *

Jeff stared at the keys Craig had dropped in his hands as he had left. He fleetingly wondered if the little imp had made a spare. Just to be sure he would be changing the locks first thing tomorrow morning. But first he had to come up with a plan to apologize to Annie. Then another plan to get her to be friends with him again. Then yet another plan to woo her. Woo. Who even used that word? Irrelevant. Of course each of those plans had to have individual backup plans. And how many layers of backup plans did he need?

He started getting bogged down in thinking about the mountain of work ahead of him but he shook himself out of it. It's like Annie always said. Make an outline then complete each task in turn. He had the outline. Now he just had to fill things in. First things first. Apologize to Annie Plan A. Okay he could make a plan. He was the king of plans.

15 minutes later and all he had typed into his memo app was 'Flowers?' He rolled his eyes. How original. Maybe working out would help him think.

Nope. After his second shower of the day he still was no further than he had been before he started. Although his arms felt fantastic and he was reasonably certain his back was just a little bit more defined. So at least the day wasn't a total loss.

He sat back down to think more. After another fifteen minutes he barely restrained the urge to throw his phone across the room in irritation. Maybe he needed to bring in additional council. Craig had been pretty cool this morning. But he had also been adamant that Jeff had to figure this part out for himself so he was out. Who else did he know. Abed? As Annie's roommate he probably had inside information that would be useful. But then again he was Annie's roommate so she had probably already made him swear not to talk to him or something. Okay so Craig and Abed were out. What about Duncan? No. Britta? No. Shirley? Hell no.

For a minute Jeff let himself miss Pierce. Sure he had been a colossal pain in the ass but he had also been married seven times. And that combination meant that he probably had years of experience in apologizing to women he cared about. It was too bad he didn't know anyone else with that kind of experience. The only older man he knew was Hickey.

Wait. Hickey had been married three times!

He quickly switched over to messaging and typed a quick message to his officemate.

Jeff: Hey Buzz, you were married three times. Any advice on how to apologize to a woman when you actually care?

15 minutes later he received the brief and frustrating answer.

Hickey: Hell no. I'm not getting involved

But he was determined to bring in this expert witness and sent his reply less than ten seconds later.

Jeff: Buzz please. I'm asking for your help. Don't make me beg. Don't force me to make this weird.

He finally received a response one hour and one episode of Ancient Aliens later.

Hickey: Fine. But nobody knows about this.

* * *

"Wait," Duncan interrupted Britta. "So you mean to tell me that the reason Annie shot Jeff down was because she likes him too much to sleep with him?" He nearly fell from his chair in hysterical laughter. "That is perhaps the most hilarious thing I have ever heard in my life."

Britta grinned at him. "I'm glad you think this is so funny. But I think it's good for Jeff. He needs to learn that he can't use just his charm to get by in life. It's nice to see him knocked down a few pegs."

Duncan stopped laughing long enough to eat another bite of his bagel. "Oh I couldn't agree more. But what's so funny to me isn't that he got turned down. But that he got turned down because the girl in question thinks too much of him. Who else but Jeff bloody Winger would have a woman like that interested in him and manage to screw it up by trying to screw her?"

* * *

What kind of advice was be honest with her? Umm he had already tried that. Drunkenly and by accident. But still. Thanks for nothing, Buzz.

But Craig had made a point, too. He had to look at it from Annie's point of view. He did spring all of this on her. Maybe he just had to show her how well he knew her and that she was important to him. That it wasn't just drunken rambling.

He thought back to his Mom and her boyfriends growing up. She always loved getting presents.

A plan started to come together for Jeff. He knew that he and Annie were perfect for each other. More than that he knew her. Knew what she liked. Knows the little things about her that nobody else paid attention to. They balanced each other. She pushed him to succeed and he wanted her to appreciate the now. He liked it when she called him on his shit. He liked the way she wasn't lazy like him. That she actually cared about things. Her motivation motivated him.

He would have to use that information to get her to talk to him. Because he knew Annie held a grudge. He'd once sat in a classroom snickering as she tore down a classmate asking her for help by passive-aggressively using the girl's own words from a particularly heated in-class discussion the two had engaged in more than two years prior. He would have to make a big gesture to break through her walls.

Jeff opened his phone's web browser and went to work. Operation Win Annie Phase 1 Plan A would go into effect immediately.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Still don't own it. Still dependent on tktktk to be an absolute beta angel.

Chapter 6

When Annie came home from work on Monday evening she was in a terrible mood. She had known after her first day with Futuraza that she hated the company but it had paid well and she had seen it as the first rung on the career ladder that would eventually lead to a leadership position in a hospital. Most of that money had dried up when she dropped down to part time in order to go back to school. But she had hoped that over the summer she could save up enough money to prevent her and Abed from actually having to find a roommate on Craigslist. The few they had met with had not reacted positively to Abed's blanket-room. Of course once they had realized that they were likely not going to be able to find someone Abed had moved into Troy's room which Annie really liked. It was nice to be able to sit at the kitchen table and do her homework late into the night without worrying about keeping her roommate awake.

Then again, she hated the long hours. The only good thing about working full time this summer was going to be the flex schedule that let her work four ten-hour days and left her with three day weekends. She was pondering whether or not to drop back down to part time as she put her key in the lock and opened the door. She was greeted with the most amazing perfume filling the air.

Quickly she entered the apartment and locked the door behind her before hunting down the source of the fantastic fragrance. There on the kitchen counter stood a massive floral arrangement of white flowers in a purple vase. She moved to the giant bouquet of white flowers in awe. Unsure what to look at first. Grinning, she leaned in and breathed in the heady perfume. Orange blossoms and gardenias and jasmine. She knew without looking who had sent the flowers. But how on earth had he known...

She saw an envelope with her name on it nestled amongst the flowers and snagged it. She quickly opened it to read the note inside.

_Annie, The most classic advice when apologizing properly to a lady is to gift her with either flowers or perfume. In this case I've chosen the flowers that make up her unforgettable perfume. It's only appropriate given that the woman for whom they're intended is, herself, unforgettable. Please accept this gift. And my apologies. Can we please talk? _

"Wow," she whispered to herself. Rereading the note several times with a smile that grew bigger each time.

"They were delivered this afternoon. You're smiling. You like them." Abed observed as he walked into the kitchen. "I would have thought roses would be his choice. This seems random."

Annie turned to her roommate with a beaming smile that was bright enough to light a room. "Abed these are the flowers from the perfume my Bubbe buys me every year for my birthday! Did you tell him what my perfume was?"

His brows drew down in disbelief. "Annie I know that I'm not allowed to talk to Jeff until you two have resolved things. My position as your roommate demands that I consider him to be the enemy until you two are okay again."

Annie's grin turned rueful. "Aww! That's so sweet! But wait, how did he know what to buy then?"

"Well I can only guess," Abed said, "But either he recognized your perfume or he went to a perfume counter and smelled everything until he found it.

Her smile fell as she thought about it. She couldn't imagine that Jeff would willingly go to a perfume counter and deal with obnoxious saleswomen as he hunted down her perfume in order to buy her the matching flowers.

She looked at the bouquet again. Then again, nobody had ever bought her flowers before either. And they were gorgeous. "You know," she confessed. "I have a bouquet just like this in my wedding binder. And for exactly the same reason. I've been wearing that perfume for so many years that I think that these are 'my' scent. If that makes sense."

Abed held his hand out and with an amused huff Annie handed it over. As he read it an eyebrow rose. "I'm going to have to update my Don Draper." He handed the note back and asked, "So are you going to talk to him?"

"Not tonight. I need to think about it more," she said.

She didn't stop smiling for the rest of the evening.

* * *

Jeff checked his phone roughly every thirty seconds all night hoping to hear from Annie. He finally went to bed after midnight. Disheartened by her silence but not discouraged.

Today had been remarkably easy. He had initially felt intimidated at the overwhelming selection at the perfume counter. But as soon as he had explained to Ava and Olivia that he was looking for a woman's perfume that smelled like orange blossoms in order to buy matching flowers as an apology they had been exceedingly helpful. The whole thing had taken less than twenty minutes including buying the gift set of Pure Poison to give Annie for Christmas. He had thought that the name was oddly appropriate for her.

The florist he had gone to see had been similarly helpful. As soon as he walked in the door he had explained to the matronly woman what he was looking for and why. He'd looked up the perfume online before he came in and told her exactly which flowers he had wanted. She had sighed and gushed over the romantic gesture before telling him that orange blossoms were traditionally used in wedding bouquets with a sly smile. He had filed that bit of information with a smile. After he had asked her for a purple vase instead of the clear one she had initially started putting the flowers in because that was Annie's favorite color the woman had fluttered her hand against her chest and insisted that the vase and delivery would be free of charge because "Young love is just so thrilling!"

He checked his phone one last time before grudgingly going to sleep. It looked like he was going to have to be up early tomorrow in order to make the drive and he had already stayed up too late hoping to hear from Annie.

* * *

By Tuesday evening Annie still hadn't made her mind up about talking to Jeff. But she had been distracted at work thinking about him all day. Wondering what it would have been like if she had just reacted better. Would they have actually had sex with all of their friends sitting on the other side of her bedroom door? She had lost track of time fluctuating between daydreaming about how exactly that would have happened. In graphic detail. And reaffirming her decision to get over him. Yes the flowers had been nice but his actions had been insulting.

No, she was more certain than ever that she had made the right decision. For her future. Which she was more determined than ever would not include her job with the drug company. She had a real affinity for forensic science. Her natural detail-orientation and obsession over small details were actually a major benefit in that line of work. When the clock finally hit six she bolted out the door, ignoring the questioning looks of her coworkers.

As she walked in the front door she was surprised to see Duncan sitting at their dining table with Abed, eating blueberries from a large basket. "Umm hey guys," she said with her brow crinkled in confusion. "Did...you go berry picking today?"

"Not us," Duncan corrected with a big smile. "That would be Jeff. These are for you, actually. I'm just the delivery boy."

Her jaw dropped in shock. The nearest berry patch was over an hour away. She had gone with her Dad and his family every summer when she was just a little girl. "You have got to be kidding me," Annie said.

"I am most certainly not." Duncan affected a pompous air. "And he sent a note as well," he handed her an envelope with a knowing smile.

She chose to ignore him and tore the envelope open to read what Jeff had sent.

_Annie, I know that blueberries are your favorite and it's my hope that these make you smile. Because your smile is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen and you deserve to smile more often. But do yourself a favor and continue to buy these from the farmers market. And give those guys a break. Turns out picking these is way harder than you'd think. Please accept them. And my apologies. Can we please talk?_

She held a hand over her mouth in a vain attempt to hide her laughter. Eyes dancing she looked at the men still nibbling on berries as they watched her reaction with interest. "That man is unbelievable."

"What did it say?" Duncan asked as he held his hand out for the note. "He wouldn't let me read it before he sent me over here." She handed it over, still trying to hide her laughter. As first Duncan, then Abed read the note she snagged an handful of the plump, sweet berries and closed her eyes in bliss. They were perfect.

"So Jeff sent you over as his errand boy, then?" Annie asked casually. Trying to hide her interest and failing spectacularly. "How...how is he?"

Duncan had been chuckling over the funny note but her question sobered him immediately. "Annie, I've known Jeff Winger for seven years and in all that time I have never actually seen him show the slightest scrap of actual remorse. Until today. Whatever happened between you two I can tell you with absolute certainty that he is very sorry."

"Well he should be," Annie responded automatically. "He was an idiot. But I do appreciate the gesture." She reached over and took another one of the berries. Popping it in her mouth and moaning in pleasure. "And these are amazing. Duncan, do you want to stay for dinner? I'm suddenly in the mood for blueberry pancakes.

* * *

"So are you going to call him?" Abed asked after Duncan had left.

"I haven't decided," she confessed. "I know he feels bad but I'm still too mad to be rational if I talk to him. Every time I really think about what happened I get mad all over again. I'm going to have to think about it for a few more days." She put the basket of berries in the refrigerator before grabbing two glasses of water and joining Abed on the couch to watch a rerun from the last season of Inspector Spacetime.

"So you think you will be ready to talk to him by this weekend then?" Her roommate asked insistently.

Annie pulled a face. "I don't know. Maybe? Why do you want to know?"

"Jeff is supposed to go see The Amazing Spider Man 2 with me on Sunday since Rachel is still mad about the premature reboot. I need to know how long I need to consider him the enemy. I might have to make alternate arrangements."

Annie felt terrible that her anger and Abed's loyalty were coming between the friends. "Oh Abed no. Listen. It's really sweet for you not to talk to Jeff since I'm mad at him but it seems like that's not really fair to either of you. Don't change your plans, okay? He's your friend too so you should feel free to talk to him no matter what. Okay?"

"Cool," he replied as he flipped to BBC America and pulled out his phone, "cool cool cool."

* * *

"What did she say?" Jeff said without preamble as soon as he answered the call.

"She said you're an idiot, actually," Duncan replied. "Abed told me that she's furious with you."

Jeff closed his eyes in defeat. He would have to redouble his efforts. There had to be a way to make her forgive him enough to at least talk to him again.

"But," Duncan said, "she also said that you were unbelievable. And she was smiling when she said it. And most importantly she asked how you were doing. She was worried, Jeff. I do believe that the woman may be thawing towards you."

Jeff pumped a fist in victory. Yes! "Ian you are the best and I owe you a bottle of scotch for this! Thank you!"

"No need to thank me, my friend. Annie asked me to stay for dinner and she made the most amazing blueberry pancakes."

* * *

Wednesday evening Annie came home with an extra bounce in her step. Her supervisor had called her into his office and let her know that her biggest account had opened a second office. Their order, and therefore her commission, would be doubling. That meant she could drop back down to part time with only a small decrease in her paycheck!

She was already imagining all of the things she could accomplish with all her free time that summer. She could take an unpaid internship with the Greendale Police if she wanted. That plus the recommendation Hickey had promised her would put her in a better position to get a paid job with them once she graduated. She made a mental note to review the internship posting that evening. Maybe she could call Craig and see if he knew of any as well.

"Abed!" She cheerfully called out as she opened the door. "The most amazing thing happened today!" But as she noticed all of the lights were off she realized her roommate wasn't home. A quick text verified that he had plans with Rachel for the evening.

She was somewhat deflated that Abed wouldn't be home all night. She had wanted to celebrate her good news that evening. She immediately thought about texting Jeff but decided against it. She still wasn't ready to talk to him yet. Instead she texted Britta and was happy that her friend didn't already have plans for the night. Britta let her know she'd be over in thirty minutes with a few bottles of wine.

Her phone chimed with a text as soon as she's ordered the pizza.

Abed: Jeff sent you something else while you were at work. I left it in your room.

Intrigued, she opened the door and was surprised when what she saw brought tears to her eyes. There was a teddy bear sitting on her bed. It was big and fluffy and dressed like an old fashioned detective. It had a little fedora and trenchcoat and even had a little magnifying glass in one hand. The other had a note tied to it.

_Annie. It turns out to be surprisingly difficult to find a stuffed animal that represents a forensic scientist. Please accept this reasonable facsimile. And my apologies. Can we please talk?_

_p.s. His name is Dixon Hill and despite his tough appearance he has one weakness. He's scared of thunderstorms. Maybe you could comfort him if he ever has a hard time getting to sleep because of the thunder. _

She wiped away her tears and threw herself onto her bed to cuddle up with the fluffy gift and remember the night Jeff had found out about her irrational fear of storms.

He had been walking her to her car after a late night study session and it had been raining. A loud thunder crack had scared her and she had squeaked and jumped in fright. Jeff had laughed at her and shot her a smirk, "Don't tell me you're scared of a little thunder, Edison."

When she had glared at him and wrapped her arms more tightly around herself he had surprised her. He had given an exasperated and put-upon sigh. Then wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her into a loose hug as they walked to her car. "It can be our secret," he'd murmured to her. "

She wiped away her tears and changed out of her work clothes with a sad smile on her face. Jeff had surprised her. He had no way of knowing how absolutely perfect that teddy bear was unless he knew her better than she had wanted to admit. Okay. Maybe she was more than a pair of talking boobs to him. It was possible that she had misread what had happened. Maybe she should call him.

The doorbell rang before she could ruminate more on things and she ran out to greet Britta with a smile. "I'm so glad you could make it!" she exclaimed.

"Of course! I wouldn't miss the chance to celebrate with my best girlfriend!" Britta responded with a beaming smile of her own as she handed her two of the white wine bottles while holding up the third. "This one is cold but we need to chill those for a bit."

Annie grinned and followed her into the apartment.

"Whoa, what's with the flowers?" Britta asked as soon as the bouquet on the counter came into view. "Did someone die?"

"Oh. No," Annie demured as she moved the basket of blueberries to the side in order to fit the wine into the refrigerator. "Actually Jeff sent those."

"Flowers. The classic male apology," Britta said dismissively. "You haven't talked to him have you?" She asked as the women went to sit on the couch and Britta expertly opened the screw-top bottle of cheap white wine.

"Nope," Annie responded as she poured two glasses and handed one to her friend.

"I'm proud of you!" Britta grinned. "I propose a toast. To women too smart to be bought by apology flowers."

They clinked glasses and grinned at each other. It was nice to have someone who supported her decision. "Thank you!" Annie exclaimed. "You've been so supportive of my decision and I want you to know how much I appreciate it."

Britta smiled widely. "That's what friends are for!" She looked back over at the bouquet and snorted in derision. "He couldn't even spring for roses, huh?"

Annie appreciated the support but she was irritated that Britta has so easily dismissed the gift that had been so thoughtful. "Actually those are the flowers in my perfume," she clarified.

Britta swung her head back around and leveled Annie with a look of utter disbelief. "You can't possibly believe that was anything other than a coincidence," she said flatly.

Annie set down her glass with a loud clink. "Hold that thought," she said as she went into her room. She grabbed the note from the flowers as well as the note from the blueberries and the teddy bear with its note before briskly walking back into the living room and her waiting friend.

"Look at these! Here," she handed her friend the note that had come with the flowers. "See? It was totally on purpose! And he picked me fresh blueberries. See? He knows they're my favorite." She handed Britta the second note. "And look! He got me a stuffed detective bear! It's not a forensic scientist but it was the closest he could come. I don't even know where he found this," she said as she handed over the third note. "I think Jeff is really sorry and really trying to apologize," she said just as the doorbell rang. She whirled around to go get the pizza and tip the driver. Not really sure where the need to so passionately defend Jeff had come from.

Britta read each of the notes in stunned silence. He had clearly gone to a lot of trouble to give Annie gifts that showed how well he knew her and his choices made it clear that he thought highly of her. And these notes were pretty romantic. Actually, they were completely romantic. There wasn't the slightest hint that he just wanted to sleep with Annie.

She frowned. Jeff never put this much effort into anything for her and they had dated for months. The most romantic thing he had ever done for her was buy her was a cup of coffee, she thought somewhat bitterly. And yet all that it had taken was Annie telling him she wasn't interested and suddenly here were these hidden depths. What did this mean?

Her eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped as the only possible answer came to her. With a panicked look at Annie coming in with the pizza she stood up and grabbed her purse. "Oh crap! Annie I am so sorry but I just remembered that I had plans tonight! I'm so sorry to run out on you like this but I have to go! Have a good night! And congratulations about the work thing!" She called out as she rushed out the door.

"But what am I supposed to do with all of this pizza and wine?" Annie called out plaintively as Britta rushed out the door.

After the door slammed shut she whispered sadly to herself, "I was supposed to be celebrating."


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Still don't own it. Thank you for the kind words, reviewers! You all make my day. And of course a BIG thank you to tktktk for being a lovely beta!

Chapter 7

Jeff huffed in irritation at the insistent pounding on his door that was interrupting his workout. If this was Craig asking if he wanted to go out for drinks again so help him he would throw the little man right down the hallway. He flung open the door with a growled, "What?" and reared back in surprise when Britta pushed him aside and stormed into his apartment.

"Make yourself at home," he snarked as he turned to follow her. "What can I do for you?"

Britta whirled around and glared daggers at him. "I just came from Annie's place. Care to explain exactly what your game is?"

His expression closed and he gave her the patented Jeff Winger innocently sincere face. "What game? There is no game, Britta. I'm just really sorry about what happened and I'm trying to apologize to Annie."

Britta knew that face. She'd seen him use it time and again to hide his real intentions from people. Though mildly insulted that he thought it would work on her she nonetheless grinned in triumph. She knew it! "You like her!" she crowed, pointing a finger in accusation.

He sneered at her, "Of course I like her. What kind of stupid-"

"No!" Britta interrupted quickly, slicing her hand through the air. He was not going to treat her like an idiot. She knew him too well to fall for his tired tricks. "I mean you LIKE her!"

"What is this, middle school? Do you even hear yourself?" He deflected. Already trying to figure out a way to get rid of the blond who was being uncharacteristically observant. He was uncomfortable with the thought of a Britta who had both training as a therapist and was actually perceptive. "I just want Annie to stop being mad at me so we can go back to being friends," he insisted.

Britta smirked. "Keep telling yourself that, Winger. But tell me one thing. What do you want to happen. All the presents and the notes. What do you want from Annie?" Say it, she thought loudly at him. Tell the truth. Let me know that you, at least, are aware of how you feel.

But she was to be disappointed. Jeff shut down and repeated the party line. He was in no way interested in sharing his grand plan with Britta. He had already spilled everything to both Craig and Duncan. There was zero chance another one of his friends was going to drag it out of him. Especially not the one who could Britta this whole thing if she got involved. "I just want Annie to talk to me. I want to apologize and I want to try to be friends again," he repeated.

"Just friends?" she asked with an eyebrow raised. He was such a good liar but she saw right through him. Wow. It was like having a superpower. She was the living bullshit detector.

"Britta I'll take whatever Annie will let me have. If she doesn't want to be friends anymore I will have to accept that. But I want to at least have the chance plead my case to her before she hands down the final verdict." He wasn't budging. If she went running back to report to Annie he absolutely wasn't giving her any information that could hurt his case.

"But you want more, right?" Britta pressed. Hoping that he would confide in her. She wanted to be trusted with these sorts of things by her friends. When Annie had told her everything she had felt privileged to get access to her friend's mind. It was an amazing feeling and had reinvigorated her determination to become a therapist for real.

"It's not about what I want. It's about Annie." He glared at the blond. Willing her to take the hint and leave him alone.

Ha! Busted! He wouldn't be defensive and a little growly at being pressed on this if she had been wrong in her guess. That meant she'd been right! Jeff totally had actual feelings for Annie! And Annie had strong feelings for him!

Which meant...oh wow. They'd made a real mess of things. The next thought she had was that Ian was going to love this. She couldn't wait to tell him. For all that she had become more perceptive, she still didn't quite have a handle on the concept of confidential and privileged information.

She put on a contrite face and awkwardly started to leave. Being overly casual. "You're right. I'm sorry for barging in here like this. I was upset for my friend. But you're my friend, too. I won't get involved. This is between you and Annie."

She left before he could really process what she'd said. Okay that was weird. Britta was normally more tenacious when she tried to pry information out of people. She seemed to have given up way too quickly. He thought about the strange confrontation for the rest of the night, hoping to hear from Annie. But she never called him.

It was time to bring out the big guns.

* * *

"So let me get caught up," Rachel said as she set another bowl of buttered noodles on her precious coffee table in front of Abed. It was made from a big cable spool and she'd glued X-Men comics to every surface before varnishing. She settled onto the lumpy futon and looked at her boyfriend. "He sent her the flowers from her perfume, then drove an hour away and picked blueberries for her because they're her favorite, but then he sent her a teddy bear? I get the first two but isn't a stuffed animal a little creepy? I mean he's already a lot older than her. Doesn't this just. I don't know," she gestured vaguely with her fork, "highlight the age difference?"

Abed shook his head and explained. "It would if it were anyone else but he's immature and she's got life experience that aged her. Realistically they're both around 30. I'm 80% sure the bear is going to be the present that makes her call him, though. She threw out all of her stuffed animals and regrets it. Jeff got her the perfect gift."

"Nobody can be that lucky." Rachel said archly. She leaned in and gave him a searching look. "Did you give him a hint?"

"Yes," he admitted without shame. "I sent him a text last night and reminded him that even a forensic scientist can love stuffed animals. I also told him she threw all of hers out in misguided zeal and regretted it. She made an irrational connection between her feeling for Jeff and not being as successful as she wants to be when she was upset. I had to edit for time. It's taking too long for this plot line to play out. "

Rachel nodded in agreement as she took a bite of her noodles. "But aren't you worried that you've meddled in things beyond your ken?"

Abed shot her a flatly disgusted look. "Never reference that show to me again."

* * *

"You're not going to believe what I just found out!" Britta practically squealed as soon as he answered her call.

"That an avocado is a berry and a strawberry isn't?" Duncan responded with a smile in his voice.

"I..what? No." Britta was momentarily taken aback and shook her head to dislodge the thought before continuing with the news. "Jeff likes Annie. Like, he LIKES her."

"Correction. Jeff is in love with Annie. Yes, I know." He said in a bored tone. As if she had been excited that grass was green or the sky was blue.

Britta gasped in shock. "What the hell, Ian? Why didn't you tell me? I had to figure it out on my own!" She reprimanded him. "I've told you everything as soon as I knew it. You're supposed to return the favor! That's how gossiping about our friends works!" She exclaimed in irritation. "So how did you find out? And when?"

"He asked me to deliver something to Annie a couple of days ago and he told me. Isn't it marvelous? They're like clichéd little ships passing in the night. It's going to be hilarious to watch this play out." He laughed mischievously.

"You know, it really is. Oh and that means you knew last night and never told me!" She pointed out with faux anger.

"Britta, have I taught you nothing about doctor-patient confidentiality? I couldn't. Don't be mad." He was laughing as he said it, which ruined the already mild chastisement.

Britta couldn't help but laugh in response. He had a fair point after all. "Hey I know I told you earlier that I was going to be busy tonight," she said. "But I bailed on Annie to come yell at Jeff and I'm just leaving his place. Want to grab some sushi and go for a bike ride?"

"Britta! Is that an innuendo?" Duncan asked with feigned indignation. "I am quite frankly shocked! And yes!"

Britta actually blushed even as she laughed heartily. "Well it wasn't when I said it but it is now!"

* * *

Thursday when Annie got home from work there was a note on the door that she had a delivery at the office. She couldn't stop the smile from splitting her face. She'd already made up her mind that she would ask Jeff to stop sending gifts. She would talk to him about what had happened when she was ready to and not a moment sooner. And she certainly wasn't going to let him keep sending her presents every day. She may be determined not to be in love with Jeff Winger but she wouldn't use him either. She wasn't that type of woman and she never wanted to be. Although she would be lying to herself if she tried to pretend she wasn't curious what he had sent today.

She rushed to the front office and brought the heavy box back home. Sitting on the sofa she unwrapped it carefully. She gasped in delight as she pulled out a purple and black paintball gun. It was sleek and powerful looking and downright sexy. Reluctantly she set the gun down and opened the included note.

_Annie, I'm not saying that you're going to need this in the future. But we both know Greendale is a battleground. The good news is that together we make an unstoppable team. A lot of people want a lot of things, Milady. What I want is for you to please accept this gift. And my apologies. Can we please talk?_

She grinned and picked up the gun again, admiring the length of the barrel and the way it fit perfectly in her hands. "You did good, Milord" she muttered to herself. She was still admiring it and fighting off imaginary foes when Abed came home and sat next to her.

"Is that a Planet Eclipse Etek4 LT?" he asked pointing at the gun with interest. "Those are some of the best guns available. Where did you get it? How did you get it?"

"I don't know. Maybe?" She responded with an enthusiastic grin as she casually spun it in her hand like a gunslinger. "Jeff sent it. It's it awesome?" She gushed as she aimed kill-shots at the television, the window, and a poster on the wall in quick succession.

"Annie, that's a $500 paintball gun." he said.

"WHAT?" She squawked. She dropped the gun into Abed's waiting hands as if it were on fire and ran into her room to grab her phone off the charger. She was so flustered it took her three tries and she ended up ripping the cord out of the outlet on accident before finally freeing her phone and opening her messenger app. It was time to break her self-imposed order not to contact Jeff. She quickly fired off a text.

Jeff had been making himself a light dinner of lemon and dill salmon with a spinach salad when his phone chimed to alert him of an incoming text. He slid the salmon onto his plate in a rush and tossed the cooking sheet on the range before he turned off the oven then sat the plate down to grab his phone. It was from Annie! He knew an over-the-top gift like the paintball gun would work!

Annie: Thank you for the paintball gun but I can't accept this! 

Yes! He took a bite of salmon while he thought about what to send back. He had to keep his cool. Don't be desperate.

Jeff: Do you like it? 

Annie rolled her eyes in fond exasperation when she got Jeff's reply. She laid on her bed and stared at her phone with a giddy smile. What kind of question was that? The blatant fishing for compliments kind. However in this case it was well deserved and should be rewarded.

Annie: Of course I like it! It's practically perfect in every way. They all are. 

He smiled fondly at her Mary Poppins reference. It was her favorite Disney movie and the titular character was her idol. Okay, let her know you get the reference but don't be sappy.

Jeff: Does that mean you think it's supercalifragilisticexpialidocious? I'm glad you like it. 

Annie blushed and grabbed her lower lip between her teeth. Glad he couldn't see her. This was exactly why Jeff Winger was so hard not to love. He made her feel fluttery and excited with just a few casually thrown out words. Her smile dropped as she remembered the reason she was so mad at him was some casually thrown out words. Future, Annie. Think of your future.

Annie: You know it is. And I love it. But I still can't accept this. It's too much! 

Oh no she didn't. Think, Winger. He looked out into the living room and the ridiculous sparkly purple swag fabric thing that was still above his window caught his eye. He smirked. She wasn't the only one who could bring up conversations from forever ago just to make a point.

Jeff: I'm shocked at you! Don't you know it's rude not to accept a present? 

Annie smiled despite herself. So he remembered what she'd said to him when she decorated his apartment. That was sweet. And just as he had that day, she gracefully relented.

Annie: Thank you. It's awesome. 

Ok Winger time to make your move

Jeff: You're welcome. Can we talk? 

Her smile faded and she thought again about why she was mad at him. Did she want to actually have that conversation yet? She knew she couldn't ignore the elephant in the room forever but she didn't want to have a fight with him. Why did he have to be such an ass last weekend?

Annie: I don't think that's a good idea. 

Damn. He'd pressed her too hard and she was skittish. Okay time to let her know he wasn't giving up but that he wouldn't pressure her, either.

Jeff: I understand. But Annie I'm not giving up. You have no idea how much effort you rate these days. I'm just getting started. 

Her irritation faded into fond exasperation. He was right. They did need to talk. To clear the air. Maybe they could salvage their friendship if nothing else.

Annie: Fine we can talk. But I'm not ready yet. And these presents have to stop. Promise me. 

Jeff had been enjoying their conversation and for a moment forgot his plan to think carefully about every word he sent. He sent a response out of instinct and when he realized what he had sent he could have hit himself. Way to go, Winger. You're supposed to be apologizing, not flirting.

Jeff: Ask me nicely. 

Annie grinned at her phone. She had missed this. Had missed their conversations. They way he teased her and stopped her from being so serious all the time. The way she got just a little bit of a thrill when he was commanding.

Annie: lol you're ridiculous. Okay. Jeff will you pretty please stop buying me amazing presents? 

That was a lol. A lol meant he was still in the game. He grinned as he typed his reply.

Jeff: Never. But I will temporarily refrain from buying you things because you asked so nicely. 

She didn't respond but it really didn't matter. He had won a small victory. Plan A seemed to have yielded all that it would. It was time to come up with Plan B.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Guys. I know we're all hurting right now. Prayer circle that Netflix picks up our show for a 6th season. **#NetflixSaveCommunity** In the meantime here's a fun little drabble, eh? Thanks to tktktk for being the best of betas! Oh, still don't own it.

Chapter 8

Jeff paused with his hand set to knock on the door. This was a good idea, right? He had stayed up all night trying to come up with a Plan B and had hated everything he thought of. Seriously, skywriting? He was embarrassed for himself. As of this morning he was still no further than he had been when he started thinking last evening. And so here he was. Driven by desperation to do what he could never have imagined himself doing even yesterday.

He closed his eyes, counted to ten, and knocked before he could talk himself out of it.

"Just a moment!" The voice called from within and the door opened. A hand went up to indicate Jeff should wait where he was as the owner completed their phone call. "Isn't that a bit cliche even for you?" There was a pause while whomever was on the other end of the line said something. "No. You're right of course. Desperate times and all that. I'll take care of it."

Jeff raised an eyebrow. What the what? "Is this a bad time?" He asked.

"Of course not, Jeffrey! I can and will always happily make time for you! What can I do ya for?" The Dean asked with a wink and a campy smile as he locked his phone and put it in the pocket of his voluminous green silk robe.

Jeff let out a small huff of fond amusement. "Craig I came for advice. Do you have a minute?"

"Well! Isn't this just shaping up to be a banner day for Chez Pelton! Of course of course! Come in!" Craig ushered Jeff into his apartment with a courtly bow.

Jeff stepped hesitantly into Craig's condo. He had never actually been there before and had absolutely no idea what he would find.

It was almost disappointingly normal. Jeff had imagined that Craig's design idol would be more like Liberace. With gold and crystal and feathers everywhere. What he saw instead was more Restoration Hardware. The furniture was tailored in a tasteful cream and there were shelves crammed with pictures and small ornaments and books of all kinds.

"Wow, Craig. Your place is great!" Jeff said in surprise. He wasn't sure but he thought he recognized those end tables as a set he'd once had his eye on as well, in more lucrative times.

"Oh now, Jeffrey. You'll make me blush!" The Dean enthused as he waved a hand at the sofa and took a seat in a comfortable looking leather recliner. "So you need advice, is it? Are things not going well with Annie?" he asked with a concerned tilt to his head.

"I've made progress but I've hit a bit of a wall," Jeff admitted, still not sure that asking his boss for advice was the best thing but out of ideas of his own. "I got her to text me last night finally, but she still won't actually talk to me."

"Mmhmm," Craig nodded. "And how did you get her to text you?" he settled right back into his therapist persona, nevermind that he was occasionally adjusting the flowing robes he wore.

"I sent her presents that I hoped showed how well I knew her. And they worked in as much as she did text me. But only to ask me to stop sending her gifts. I tried to think of something else to get through to her but short of just calling her or showing up at her apartment I honestly have no idea where to go from here. And I don't want to do either of those because frankly it would be creepy and I've already given her enough reason to be mad at me."

"And you turn to me, Jeffrey! Well I'm flattered! I'm more than happy to offer any ideas I can come up with! Give me some time to think of something. How about you go home. Enjoy your day, and I'll come over tomorrow afternoon and we can go over some ideas. Does that work for you?" Craig asked with a professional yet courteous manner.

"Uhh...sure?" Jeff answered with confusion written all over his face. "Look, Craig. I don't want you to think I don't appreciate your help. You've actually been way more helpful than I would have thought. And I'm grateful, but I'd hoped to implement a new plan this weekend."

Craig gave him a sympathetic smile. "I'm terribly sorry. But I want to give this some thought. I'd hate to recommend something I hadn't thought through enough and ruin everything! Why I'd never forgive myself! Would you do that to me?" He asked with the mournful look of an abandoned puppy.

"...No? No, I guess not." Jeff's shoulders dropped. "So. I guess I'll just...hang out and I'll see you tomorrow?" He asked. What the hell was he going to do with another twenty four hours to obsess over this?

"Excellent!" the Dean clapped as he stood up. "Now I hate to be a Rude Ruth but I've got a lot planned today and I need to get everything done so I can think up a foolproof plan for you!"

"Oh yeah. Of course," Jeff said as he stood and walked to the door. He paused and looked back over his shoulder. "And I mean it, Craig. Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet, Jeffrey." Craig said with a wagging finger. "Thank me when you and Annie are together!"

Jeff nodded and went back home to waste the next twenty four hours. What could he do to fill the time?

* * *

Annie had just finished her laundry Friday morning, glad for the day off from work, when her phone rang. An actual phone call? Who even did that anymore? She hung up the last of her summer blouses in the closet and pulled her phone only to raise an eyebrow in confusion. The Dean was calling her?

"Hi Dean Pelton. What can I help you with?" She said cheerfully. No reason to assume his call was bad news. Even if he did live next door to Jeff. Oh god, "Oh my god did something happen to Jeff? Is he okay?" she asked worriedly.

"Annie Edison! First of all, Jeff is fine as far as I know. And secondly I believe I already told you to call me Craig!" He chastised gently.

Annie held a hand to chest and willed her heart to stop racing. Jeff was fine. Of course he was. It wasn't all about Jeff, after all. And she was disappointed in herself for assuming it was and getting so worried. "I'm sorry, Craig. So what's up?"

"Well, I know you've had a bit of a weird week so I'm calling to cordially invite you to a pool party here at the Condo tomorrow!"

Oh that sounded fun! Wait. Neighbors. "Craig I'd love to but I really don't want to run into Jeff right now so I'm going to have to pass. But thank you very much for thinking of me," she declined politely. Disappointed that she would have to miss a party.

"Oh no need to worry about that. He went out of town this morning to visit his Mom." Craig said dismissively. "That's actually when I got the idea. I bet you could use a little frivolity right about now. Am I right?"

Jeff was out of town? To visit his Mom? Focus, Annie. "So very right," she agreed. "So yeah. Yeah that sounds fun! What time should I be there? I assume everyone else is coming?"

"You assume right! Why don't we plan on noon and we can grill hot dogs and have a good old fashioned summer party!" Craig gushed. "Oh and I'll ask Shirley to make cupcakes with little icing pool toys! This is going to be so much fun! So I can count on seeing you tomorrow at noon?" He asked.

Annie laughed at his enthusiasm. "Yes I'll be there. Thank you for inviting me and I'll see you tomorrow!"

After they had hung up Annie looked through her dresser to decide what she would wear the next day, excited about having a pool party in the unseasonably warm weather they'd been having. As she was laying out her SPF 100 sunscreen she received an incoming text from Britta.

Britta: Hey! You're going to Craig's pool party right?

Annie: Yep! Just got off the phone with him. Once he let me know Jeff wasn't going to be there I told him I would come.

Craig had said what now? Britta's brow crinkled in confusion and she turned to Ian to ask. "Hey, did Jeff go out of town?"

Duncan gave her a puzzled look as he pulled her feet into his lap to massage them. "I have no idea what you're talking about." He said.

Britta closed her eyes for a minute, enjoying the foot rub before she remembered what she had been asking. "Did Jeff say anything to you about going out of town when you two were on the phone this morning?"

Duncan's brows drew down in confusion. "Why would he want to go rock climbing together this afternoon if he were going out of town?"

"That's what I thought!" Britta said with an evil chuckle. Oh Dean Pelton, she thought, I had no idea you were so deliciously devious! Her estimation of the man rose considerably. She fired off another text to Annie.

Britta: Good! Listen, are you free today? I need a new swimsuit. I'll talk to Shirley and see if she does, too. Let's have a girls day! We can go to lunch then buy swimsuits and it will be fun!

Annie grinned. She had just been thinking that all of her swimsuits were a bit juvenile. And she had gotten paid that morning. Britta had perfect timing.

Annie: Get out of my head! Yes! Oh and pedicures! When and where?

* * *

The three women exchanged hugs and squeals as if they hadn't seen each other in months as they sat down in the casual bistro where they'd agreed to meet. Shirley was looking happier than her friends had seen her since Andre and the kids had left. They placed their orders and as they sipped on iced tea started chatting.

"Shirley you have to tell me!" Annie said with mock seriousness. "You didn't cook up this pool party with the Dean for another stealth baptism, did you?"

"Oh now!" Shirley exclaimed. "That was one time! And I promised I wouldn't ever do that particular thing again." She waved her hand and changed the subject. "How has your week been, you two?"

Britta and Annie exchanged a glance. Had neither of them filled Shirley in on what had happened? She had been there last weekend. They each shook their heads, letting the other know they hadn't talked to Shirley, who was generally very busy with her business, even in the summer months. In fact, she had been hesitant to leave the shop to go shopping until Britta had practically begged her.

"Well," Annie said hesitantly. "I got good news at work that means I'm going to be able to drop to part time this summer. I'm hoping to get an internship with the Greendale PD."

Britta rolled her eyes. Trust Annie to gloss over the actual big thing that had been happening. She turned to Shirley and conspiratorially said, "Annie still hasn't talked to Jeff. She's still mad at him about last weekend."

Shirley grinned widely and said to Britta, "Well I don't know what that boy was thinking. Trying to hit on a sweet little thing like our Annie. He should be ashamed of himself, trying to corrupt that little girl." She continued in that vein for several minutes ranting against grown men hitting on innocent young ladies who couldn't possibly be ready for an adult relationship. And how she couldn't believe his audacity, even if he had been drinking.

Annie fumed silently. Couldn't possibly be ready for an adult relationship? Shirley was talking about her like she wasn't even there! Not to mention that umm hello? She was hardly a little girl and Jeff was hardly the big bad wolf. Ugh she was done listening to this. With a sweet smile and a perky voice she turned on the well-intentioned woman. "Shirley what was your wedding to Andre like?"

Britta turned to Annie and gaped at her. She wouldn't.

Shirley immediately stopped her tirade and turned a beaming smile on the brunette. "Oh! Oh sweetie it was beautiful! It was at our church of course and it was the most beautiful October day. That was the happiest day of my life aside from having my sweet babies."

Annie continued to spin her web. With big eyes she asked, "Do you regret it? Your marriage, I mean. After everything that's happened?"

Shirley's smile turned rueful and she reached out to pat Annie's hand. "Oh nooo. Not at all. I know what happened between us wasn't ideal but I don't regret it for a moment. We had fifteen good years together before the incident and even though these past five years haven't been the best I can honestly say I don't regret it. Not for a moment."

Annie gave her friend a concerned look and held her hand, "So looking back you wouldn't have done anything differently?"

Shirley beamed. "Oh my, no. I knew from the moment I met him that Andre was the one. Marrying him was the most beautiful thing that's ever happened to me and I will always be grateful for what we had."

Annie had laid her trap perfectly and she sprung it without mercy. "Shirley how old were you when you two got married?" she asked.

Shirley was still smiling at the memories of a happier time, "I was 22."

Gotcha. "Shirley I'm 23. Don't you think I'm also old enough to make my own decision about whether or not I'm ready for an adult relationship?"

Britta mentally gave Annie a high five. You go girl!

After Shirley had apologized for not realizing how much Annie had grown up and Annie had apologized for the manner in which she had made her point they managed to have a lovely lunch before heading to the dreaded mall to buy swimsuits.

"Strength in numbers, ladies. I've always hated buying swimsuits and I'm going to need your support," Shirley confessed.

Annie couldn't help but agree with her. "I don't usually do pools," she confessed, "See how pale I am? See no melanoma? That's not a coincidence. I use SPF 100 whenever I go outside."

"I just hate how hard it is to find a real swimsuit," Britta complained. "I mean I'm there to swim. Not shoot a porno. I just want something simple. But all I ever see are these teensy little bikinis. I hate bikinis and I will never wear one. Out of principal. We're going to hang out with friends. We're not there to be sexual objects."

Shirley vocally agreed but Annie, surprisingly argued with Britta as they walked into the store. "I have to wear bikinis, though. One piece suits never fit me right! Either I fall out of the top or the bottom is so baggy I look like I'm wearing a diaper!"

Britta and Shirley shared a look. They would LOVE to have her problem.

They broke off to find suits in their respective style preferences and met in front of the changing rooms. Britta decided on a navy blue racerback one piece that would have been at home in an Olympic race. "It's perfect!" She beamed.

Shirley selected a swimdress in a bright, cheerful tropical pattern with hidden underwire support and a fun flower accent. "Lord almighty it supports the girls and still preserves my modesty! Praise Jesus!" she crowed in happiness. This was the first suit in years that she had actually loved and made her feel confident.

But Annie was having a harder time. All of the bikinis lacked chest support and the bottoms were so small she was sure the ass crack bandit would attack her every time she leaned forward. "I officially hate everything," she groused.

Britta smiled at her friend and offered to look for some better choices. Once she got Annie's sized she grabbed a saleswoman and described exactly what she was looking for. The woman led her over to a separate display and explained that this look was so hot right now they had to have a section just for them. Britta found exactly what she was looking for and with a grin walked back over to her friends.

"Here," she said handing the two pieces to Annie. "Try these. Trust me. It's far more modest than any other bikini you'll find here."

Annie gave her a skeptical look but dutifully went into the changing room to try it on. She returned a few minutes later and both Britta and Shirley stared in wonder and surprise at their friend's transformation.

The retro inspired black rockabilly bikini had turned their normally buttoned-up and conservative friend into an absolute bombshell. She looked like an old fashioned pinup from the forties.

The contrast of the dark fabric and her pale complexion made her skin look like it glowed. The high waisted bottoms served only to emphasize her trim waist and the curve of her hips. But most impressively, the full coverage top took Annie's normally impressive cleavage to eye-popping new heights.

Britta had to stop herself from texting Jeff to let him know she would take his thanks in the form of insider information about Ian.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Still don't own it. Still utterly devoted to tktktk for being a benevolent and kind beta.

Chapter 9

It was nearly noon on Saturday when Jeff finally heard from Craig again. Let the record show it had been well over the implied twenty four hours. Not that he'd been counting the minutes or anything. And because there were no witnesses nobody would ever know how many times he had checked his phone that morning. Or that he'd jumped off the couch and vaulted over the coffee table to run for the front door when he'd heard the knock.

Jeff wrenched open the door in relief but his greeting died on his lips as he saw Craig standing in the hallway wearing a lime green fringed bikini, a blond ponytailed wig, a hot pink sequined visor, hot pink cat eyed sunglasses with rhinestones, and hot pink wedge flip flops. He was holding a tote bag in one hand and had a coordinating beach towel draped across his shoulders. "Well hey there, beach blanket bimbo."

"Good Mor-Dean!" Craig sang out as he sauntered into Jeff's condo. He perched jauntily on one of the barstools, clasped his hands on his crossed legs, and tsked in disapproval as he took in Jeff's appearance. "Jeffrey, look at you! When was the last time you shaved? And there are dark circles under your eyes! Why you look wretched!" He chastised. "This will not do! You, mister, need to get out of your funk!"

"Craig, it's fine." Jeff held up his hands to stop the man from saying anything further. "Did you come up with a plan? I've been thinking too and I think I may have a few ide-"

"Zip it!" Craig interrupted. "You aren't getting a single word out of me until you change from this frumpy zombie back into Jeffrey Winger!

"Oh come on!" Jeff balanced the fine line between derision and begging. "Who cares what I look like?"

The Dean put a hand to his chest dramatically, causing the fringe on his bikini to swing merrily. With his other hand he slid the cat-eye sunglasses down his nose and peered over the tops of them. "Well I don't know who you are, sloppy stranger, but you can just go right back to wherever you came from and return our Jeffrey Winger! Because the Jeffrey I know would NEVER have said something like that!"

Jeff's shoulders drooped and he frowned when he surreptitiously gave himself a test sniff. Flinching, he spoke very quietly. "I'll go clean up but then we talk about Annie."

The Dean shook his head in stern disagreement. "Correction. You go clean up and we go down to the pool and THEN we can talk about Annie." He saw Jeff open his mouth to argue and tried an appeal to his vanity to get the man to do as he was told. "You know I wasn't going to say anything but you're looking a little sallow. It's not a good look on you. I think you could use some sun."

It worked and Jeff held up an arm to inspect it in the low light of his living room. "You may possibly have a point," he begrudgingly admitted. "Fine. We can go down to the pool. But only for an hour. And I expect us to talk about plans while we're there." He demanded.

"Deal!" Craig cheerfully agreed. "No you just go get yourself cleaned up and ready for a little fun in the sun!"

After Jeff had slowly shuffled into the shower Craig quickly tidied up the apartment and ran a load of dishes. Lord, Jeffrey was a pig when he was depressed!

* * *

"Abed I'm still not sure why we needed to bring so many bags of ice," Annie complained as she lugged the heavy cooler full of food and drinks out of the clubhouse after they had checked in as guests. "If we need more ice can't we just go up to Craig's place any time we want?" Mentally she added a complaint that she was the one lugging the heavy cooler while he carried their lightweight totes. Rachel was struggling with the light but awkward pool rafts but gamely had a smile on her face.

He didn't look up from his phone as they kept walking. "Doesn't fit the scene we're playing out today. We need to be able to stay at the pool all day in order to maximize our poolside shenanigans." He glanced up at Annie. "It's too bad Troy isn't here. This is right in his wheelhouse." His eyes grew a little sad thinking about their missing friend.

Rachel shared a brief but panicked look with Annie and quickly changed the subject. "So! We have cooler full of both adult and non-adult beverages in aluminum cans for safety, traditional pool party foods, towels, dry clothes, flotation devices, and water guns. Did we forget anything?" She asked.

"You forgot sunscreen but don't worry, I brought plenty," Annie assured her.

"Annie takes proper skin care very seriously," Abed informed Rachel. "She knows that after SPF 45 the diminishing returns on additional coverage render anything higher effectively useless but still buys the SPF 100 just in case. It's one of her quirks."

Annie shrugged a shoulder at Rachel's questioning look. "I had an aunt that got skin cancer because she tanned too much."

The three of them walked down the stairs and stopped to admire the luxurious pool that Craig had reserved for their private party. The large kidney-shaped pool had depth markers that indicated 8ft at the deepest end and just 3ft on the other end where a wide set of stairs led down into it. Arrayed around the surrounding patio were both faux wicker loungers with waterproof fabric cushions and round tables with coordinating chairs. Each table had a cheerful green and pink umbrella to provide shade to those who wanted it. The whole thing was surrounded by a tall brick fence topped with lights fashion to look like old oil lanterns and decorative wrought iron, giving a sense of seclusion and exclusivity.

The water was clean and sparkled invitingly. Beckoning them to jump right in.

Annie gazed at it in wonder. This was far more elegant that the public pools she had swum in as a kid. She raised an eyebrow and snarked, "You know, even if our terrible apartment complex had a pool not only would it be nowhere as nice as this but they probably wouldn't allow people to reserve it for a whole day anyway."

Britta, Shirley, Duncan, and Hickey had already arrived and one of them had brought a set of iPod speakers which were playing what sounded like the Beach Boys. Greetings were made all around as the newcomers were welcomed to the party. Hickey had started the grill and was manning it as if it were his life's purpose. Frequently checking the burgers and hot dogs then making small adjustments to their positions. "To maximize efficiency." He said when asked about it.

Rachel looked around with her eyes squinted against the sun. She slid her sunglasses off of her head and back over her eyes as she asked, "But where is Craig? This is his party isn't it?"

Abed put his phone away and reassured her, "I'm sure he'll be here any minute. In the meantime we should get to the shenanigans." And with that he threw his t-shirt and flip flops aside, snagged one of the water pistols from the pile, and did a cannonball into the deep end of the pool.

Jeff heard music and laughter as he and Craig walked down the stairs that lead to the complex pool. "Sounds like there are other people here already. I hope they're not annoying."

As they got to the bottom of the stairs and rounded the corner those other people at the pool came into view. Jeff came to a full stop and didn't feel Craig run into his back. He was entirely focused on what he saw across the pool.

Annie laughed at Rachel's promises of Abed's impending demise as she untied the belt on her sheer ivory cover-up. She'd been uncertain about how appropriate it would be even as she had admired the creamy lace edging. Now she saw that Britta was right. Everyone would see her bikini as soon as she took off the cover-up anyway. Why did it matter that people could see it under the silky fabric?

She slid the robe off her shoulders and bent to put it in her tote bag next to the clothes she'd brought to change into after they were finished swimming. Sitting on a lounger she pulled a set of hair combs from her bag and deftly pulled her hair up into a quick french twist. Chlorine was so drying and she hoped to at least minimize the damage to her long hair. She had sprayed leave-in conditioner on it before they left as an additional defense against the chlorinated water.

Reaching back into her bag she grabbed her sunscreen to put on another application. She had of course applied thirty minutes ago to allow time for it to absorb into her skin but a little more wouldn't hurt. She thoroughly rubbed the cream into her legs before applying to her bared midriff, the tops of her breasts, her chest, neck, and arms.

Annie turned to ask one of her friends to help her with her back but they were all staring across the pool with identical looks on their faces. They looked like little kids who had run downstairs on Christmas morning and were in awe of the presents. She followed their gaze and her jaw dropped in shock.

Jeff felt his heart drop the minute Annie noticed him. He couldn't see her eyes behind her sunglasses but her body language said everything. This was as much of a surprise to her as it was to him. They'd been ambushed. He didn't know whether to hug Craig or punch him in his victorious little face.

Jeff looked as good as he always did. But far less clothed than usual. Annie devoured his appearance hungrily even as she gasped in shock at seeing him. His dark blue board shorts fit him perfectly and hung just low enough that she could see the beginnings of that little V she had dreamed about more than twice.

She actually salivated as she took in his fit, powerful form. Reaching up she traced her finger across her bottom lip to make sure she wasn't literally drooling.

She was trying to kill him. She was taunting him. She was punishing him. It had to be one of the three.

The Dean broke the tension by stepping out from behind Jeff and greeting everyone merrily. As soon as she saw Craig, Annie figured out exactly what had happened and how. With a gasp of outrage she stood up and stalked over to him with murder in her eyes.

"What is HE doing here?" She demanded of the Dean with an accusatory finger pointed in Jeff's general direction. "Craig, you said he wasn't going to be here!"

"I lied," Craig admitted cheerfully before he looked at her sternly. "The two of you need to talk," he continued in a flatly serious voice. "So go talk."

Annie turned her betrayed and accusing gaze on Jeff and he held his hands up in surrender. "I didn't know any of you would be here!" He swore. "I'm a victim in this ambush as much as you are," he said sincerely. "But he's not wrong. We do need to talk."

Annie turned to where the rest of her friends were watching their interaction intently. There was no getting out of this gracefully. She straightened her shoulders and turned back to the man she had been avoiding. "Fine," she relented. "But not here."

Jeff simply followed silently in her wake as she stalked up the stairs.

The Dean watched her walk away with unconcealed interest. Britta noticed and asked him in confusion, "Umm Craig I didn't think you were into women?"

The Dean was deeply offended. "I appreciate BEAUTY, Britta! I don't discriminate!"

Huh, Britta thought. Suddenly Greendale's quest to be completely inclusive made just a little bit more sense.

Hickey went back to the grill muttering that drama belonged on the television not at the pool and Duncan followed to offer his admittedly amateur help.

Abed and Rachel climbed out of the pool and walked over to where the Dean was standing next to Britta and Shirley. "Good job getting him here. And excellent timing."

Shirley held out a hand. "Wait a minute. Do you mean to tell me the two of you cooked up this whole thing together?" She turned to Abed and Craig in disappointment. "That's not nice. Annie made it clear she wasn't happy with Jeff."

Craig, Rachel, and Britta rolled their eyes at the same time while Abed answered. "They were taking too long. They're both interested in each other. It was a misunderstanding which while amusing, had the potential of taking too long to play out without outside assistance. It was either this or figure out how to lock them in an industrial freezer together. This particular scenario has the highest probability of a successful resolution."

* * *

Annie shifted from one foot to the other uncomfortably while Jeff unlocked his door, wishing she'd thought to grab her cover-up or her towel or really anything that would have prevented her from essentially being in her underwear. She was acutely aware that they were mostly unclothed and about to have what was sure to be an uncomfortable conversation. She swept into his apartment and after he had closed and locked the door behind her, turned to face him. They stared at each other awkwardly even as they unconsciously drifted closer to each other.

He noticed that she was attempting to cover herself with her arms and with a fond half-smile he went into his room. He reached into his closet and grabbed the first shirt he touched. Returning to the living room he thrust it at her wordlessly.

She took it with a shy but grateful smile and slipped it over her arms. As she buttoned it she stared at him through her eyelashes, thinking that in other circumstances this would be a very intimate act. It smelled like him underneath the chemical smell of the dry cleaning. That woodsy scent she'd always loved. Surreptitiously she inhaled deeply, god she'd always loved that smell.

She should only ever wear sexy underwear and his shirts. Forever. It was a crime against humanity that she wasn't required by law to wear Jeff Winger's shirts and only Jeff Winger's shirts over lingerie. And also to never leave his home again. She could telecommute and be a forensic scientist, right? He hadn't expected to have such a strong reaction to Annie wearing his shirt but as she had given him that little look and buttoned it he had felt the impact of her gaze like a punch. His first instinct was to throw her over his shoulder and drag her into his bedroom for a year or two. Possibly forever. He was in so much trouble.

Annie didn't know what kind of sadist her inner voice was, but she actually listened when it whispered in her ear that she really didn't have to button the shirt all the way, and that so long as her exposed midriff was covered she was fine. After she had the shirt buttoned up just enough for modesty the stared at each other, uncertain. Wondering what the other was thinking. Wondering if they were thinking the same kinds of thoughts.

"I'll start," Jeff croaked out and when she nodded in agreement he gathered a lifetime of false bravado and put it all out there. Honesty was what Hickey had recommended and he had a feeling the older man was right. "I want to apologize for springing everything on you like that. Admittedly it wasn't my finest hour. I just want to reset and go back to where we were. Before I put my foot in my mouth. Is that okay? Is that something you think you can do? I understand that you don't feel the same way but if we can I want to at least be friends again." He was speaking calmly and sincerely but his eyes were naked with pain and regret.

Annie nodded hesitantly. They could do this. They could have a rational discussion. They were adults and they had known each other for years. There was no reason they couldn't amicably resolve this one unfortunate incident. "I...guess I can," she said as she turned to look away from him. It hurt to see him. She hadn't expected it to physically hurt. "But I need you to promise not to try anything like that ever again because it was insulting."

Wait, what now? She was INSULTED that he loved her? Jeff went from contrite to righteous anger in the space of a single heartbeat. "Insulted? Annie that is far and away the most offensive thing I have ever heard in my entire life! And I was a lawyer!"

What? Offensive? How dare he? She gasped and rounded on him angrily, sticking a finger in his chest and yelling at him. "Jeff, I wasn't interested in casual sex with you! You were trying to get in my pants! Yes, I was insulted!"

His eyebrows pulled down in confusion and he swatted her hand away in irritation. "Who even mentioned sex? Nobody mentioned sex! I was trying to find out why you were mad at me!"

Annie held up her hand and narrowed her eyes. "Okay. One, you didn't have to say anything. And two, I wasn't mad at you I was mad at me, okay? You're a distraction, Jeff Winger. I can't afford a distraction. Not now. I have to focus. I have goals, Jeff. And nobody but me is going to help me achieve them."

Jeff gaped at her, shocked and hurt to hear what she really thought about him. "Oh so I'm just a distraction, now? Wow. That's just great. You are a real piece of work, you know that, Edison? Is that what you think about relationships? That they're a nuisance? Is that what you think about me? That I wouldn't support you? I thought I knew you. I thought we were friends!I wish I'd known before it was too late."

Oh for crying out loud. He did not honestly expect her to feel bad because she'd refused to sleep with him. Of all the arrogant... "Too late for what? For you to come on to me? You expect me to feel BAD for you that you didn't get what you wanted for once in your life? You're unbelievable!"

Jeff sneered at her in derision. He wasn't falling for her little miss perfect act anymore. "Oh don't act innocent now. You know exactly what I'm talking about! What? You want to hear it again? You want another chance to shoot me down? Will that make you feel good? But hey, who cares, right? You already knew how I felt when you decided you didn't want to have anything to do with me, remember? Jesus, Annie. I may have been drunk but I distinctly recall you telling me that you knew I was in love with you and that you weren't interested. Right before you threw me out!"

Her eyes widened in shock when what he had been saying finally sunk in. "What did you say?" she asked. Terrified and elated at the dots she was finally connecting.

She wanted to hear it again? Fine. Not like he could take it back anyway. "Yes, okay? Yes. I love you! Are you happy now?"

Annie's eyes widened and she collapsed onto the couch as what he had said finally hit her. She'd been the one with sex on her mind all night. He'd never actually mentioned anything about sleeping with her. She'd just assumed. He had real feelings for her. And when he'd told her she'd told him off and kicked him out! "Jeff," she whispered as tears welled up in her eyes. "Oh Jeff I've made a huge mistake. I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."

But Jeff wasn't going to be moved by pretty tears. She'd broken his heart and he wasn't about to show her mercy. He didn't care if all of their friends down at the pool could hear them yelling. This fight was happening and it was happening right friggin now. He stalked over and stood near her. "What are you talking about? What mistake?"

"I was trying so hard to keep you at arm's length but all it did was make you forbidden fruit and all I could think about all night was being with you. Of all the things I wanted to do with you. To you. And then I thought you wanted to sleep with me and it was…" she trailed off and looked at him. Her eyes wide and scared as she realized what she had admitted.

Oh, holy shit. Annie Edison wanted him. This changed everything. "Tell me." he said softly. Insistently. He kneeled next to her on the couch and stared at her intently. "Say it."

"...hot," she whispered. Her pupils were dilated and her chest was heaving as the admission was wrenched from her.

This woman was going to be the death of him. Sitting on his couch in his shirt and that bikini looking like a pinup come to life just for him. Admitting she thought about being with him. In detail.

They stared at each other for what surely had to be an hour. Reeling from each other's revelations. Jeff could only think that if she wanted him he wasn't completely out of the game. If she wanted him he still had a chance to win her heart. Annie could only think about the fact that Jeff loved her. She'd loved him for so long and had finally given up on him. But now? All of the feelings she had been working so hard to lock away came roaring back.

The dam broke and they lunged at each other. Lips meeting in a frenzy of long-denied need. Years of stolen glances and not-at-all accidental touches. Their kisses were sloppy. Teeth clacking and tongues tangling together artlessly until slowly they learned from each other and what worked for them both.

Jeff held back. Not wanting to push Annie too far. He didn't want to ruin this moment.

Annie had no such hesitation. Emboldened, she climbed onto his lap and rolled her hips, grinding down on him as she feasted on his mouth. Her hands scored faint marks down his bare chest as she lost herself in the kiss. She was aggressive. Reveling in the freedom of finally being able to do what for years she'd considered only a dream. She was a wild thing. Touching every inch of skin she could get her hands on.

She discovered that his breathed hitched when she gently took the lobe of his ear between her teeth and moaned softly. That he rumbled like a great cat when she tugged on his hair. That when his powerfully built arms locked around her and she was surrounded by him she still felt completely in control. And safe. And so right. This was so very right.

Jeff learned that Annie didn't care for being treated like a delicate flower. That she whined wordlessly when he traced feather-light touches up the porcelain skin of her thighs. That when he slid his hands under that shirt she was wearing and tightly held her down on him as he ground up against her she moaned loudly. That when he cupped her breasts in his large hands it was a perfect fit. That this felt like coming home.

She felt so good. So perfect. Why had they waited so long for this? Why hadn't they done this years ago? Or at least last weekend. Last weekend..."Wait" he said breathlessly as she trailed fevered kisses down his neck. "Wait wait wait." He grabbed her shoulders and gently pushed her away. "Annie if you want this as much as I do why did you get so mad last weekend? You thought I wanted to sleep with you, and I do. But why would you kick me out?"

"Because I love you." she said gently as she touched his face in wonder. "I always have. But I never believed you'd ever feel the same way so I had to get away from you for my own sanity."

Jeff's head was spinning. "Wait. You love me? Why did you kick me out last week! Why did you tell me you weren't interested? Why didn't you say anyt-"

"Stop, Jeff! Stop!" She interrupted, "This whole thing happened because we made assumptions about each other! Listen to me." She cupped his face in her hands and looked earnestly into his eyes. Trusting that he could see the truth in them. "The night of the party I assumed you were trying to get me in bed since you weren't with Britta anymore and you were drunk and I was convenient. Jeff you were...aroused. I couldn't NOT see that!"

He didn't remember that. But he'd had to discreetly adjust himself often enough over the years that he didn't doubt her word. Oh. And she'd noticed. Her assumption made more sense. Still. "Well I'm a healthy male and have you SEEN yourself? Of course I was!"

She felt a new flutter of arousal at his words. "Well that's what I thought you were talking about. Then when you said you loved me I assumed you were saying what you thought I wanted to hear so I would take you to bed. Do you know why I reacted like I did?"

She didn't give him time to answer before plowing ahead, "Because like a week earlier I had made a promise to myself that, since you would never love me, I would try to stop loving you. Something that was already almost impossible since you're so unfairly irresistible and was even freaking harder once you were all sexy and horny and finally wanting me. But it wasn't enough and I wasn't going to get over you by sleeping with you. So I had to get you away from me."

"Wait." Jeff stopped her. Stuck on something she'd said. "So you had no idea I was in love with you until I accidentally said it? And then you assumed the absolute worst of me? What the hell, Annie?"

"Well what else was I supposed to think?" She retorted indignantly.

"Uhh I don't know," he responded sarcastically. "That when Jeff Winger actually tells a woman he loves her that he maybe means it? Do you know you're the first woman I've ever actually fallen in love with? From my perspective as soon as you found out you wanted nothing to do with me. That hurt, okay? You hurt me." The heat and anger had drained out of him and he was just tired.

"You were drunk!" She pointed out angrily.

"That doesn't mean it wasn't the truth." He sighed in defeat. They had really made a complete mess of all of this. He took a deep breath but it caught in his throat when he smelled her perfume mixed with sunscreen. That should absolutely not be as sexy as it was. "Annie I've been in love with you for years. I was just too stubborn to realize it. Do you know what finally made me accept it? It was what you said in that ridiculous hidden lab. About how we shouldn't be ashamed of our desires. I knew in that moment that I was completely in love with you. That's how the stupid robot worked, Annie. Because of how I feel about you."

She felt tears welling up again and quickly wiped them away, "Why didn't you say anything? How was I supposed to know you had actual feelings for me?"

Jeff shook his head. Yes she had been dumb about this whole thing. But really, so had he. "I didn't know how to tell you or if I should tell you. I'm out my depth here. That's what my deal was that night. I was trying to show you how I felt without coming right out and saying anything just yet. I had to know how you'd react to me when I wasn't trying to just be friends. But then you were being all weird and distant and it was so obviously only with me. And then I was stupid and got drunk even though I knew it was a bad idea. I thought you were mad at me and that wasn't okay. Annie you're the most important person in the world to me. I never want you to be angry with me." He let out a short huff of self deprecating laughter. "I should have just told you as soon as I realized it. I'm sorry."

Annie responded in a small voice, "I'm sorry, too. I never thought you would feel the same way that I did and I should have just talked to you a long time ago."

Jeff shook his head ruefully. "No, you were right. If you'd said anything to me before I figured out how I felt for myself, I probably would have reacted in some really over the top stupid way that drove you away from me forever."

Annie chuckled softly. "Touche, Winger." She sighed and gave him a little half-smile, "I'm really so sorry about all of this."

"Oh I think we get equal dibs on the blame. I get where you were coming from. You didn't know how I felt and I said it in the drunkest, dumbest way possible. But listen, you don't have to choose between me and your goals. You're not like me. You're driven. I admire it. I'm a little jealous, even."

She laughed softly and stroked his cheek. "Do you think we can actually do this? Be in a relationship?"

Jeff let what she said sink in. He put his hands on her hips and tugged her closer. He slid one hand up her back and pulled the combs from her hair, letting the silky strands tumble down her back. Then tossed the combs aside and buried his hand in the dark chocolate tresses. With the other hand he tugged her even closer. He leaned in slowly and Annie's eyes fluttered closed. He pulled back just before their lips touched, smiled a little at the way her breath hitched in frustrated anticipation and whispered, "Annie. Would you like to go out sometime? Maybe to a pool party?"

Annie smiled. Not a polite smile or a manic smile. This was a new smile. A slow, secret smile just for him. She slid her hands up his chest and twined them behind his neck, gently running her short but neatly manicured nails along the short hairs on the back of his head. "I would love to," she said clearly and sincerely. She settled in a little more and hid her smile at the way his entire body tensed with every shift of her hips. "But maybe not for an hour or two..."

* * *

A/N: Hey you. You there. Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed! I'm on the fence about an epilogue so let's just call this "Probably The End"


	10. Epilogue

A/N: Still don't own it. tktktk is the High Priestess of All Thing Beta. Go read her stuff! Thanks SO MUCH to those that took the time to let me know what you thought! Enjoy!

Epilogue

The hand Jeff had his head propped up on was starting to fall asleep but he was in no way motivated to move. It wasn't the physical satiation, though it was a factor. It was that he felt so utterly content. He idly played with a lock of Annie's hair as he watched her sleep. In his experience sex fell into one of two categories. Either it was a completely physical hook-up. Quickly finished and quickly forgotten. Or in the case of the few actual relationships he'd had, it was him trying so hard to please the other person and somehow feeling even more hollow than he did after a hook-up. Even with Britta he had never felt like they'd really connected physically. But with Annie it hadn't been either of those.

She had surprised him. He'd been prepared to take things slow. He respected Annie and knew she didn't have much experience. He had held back and she had noticed. "Jeff? Am I doing something wrong?" she'd asked. Eyes wide with concern.

He'd assured her that wasn't the case. Told her he didn't want to push her too far too fast. He was fine with waiting if she wanted. "You're considerate," she'd said gently. "But I've umm, actually thought about this for a long time. And if you're okay with it I don't want to wait anymore. I feel like we've been building to this for years."

Let it never be said that Jeffrey Winger didn't give a woman what she wanted.

He'd expected that even though she'd been very clear that she wanted this, that with her lack of experience he would be in control. Showing her what to do and how. He'd been floored when once they'd finally made their way to the bed she had pushed him onto his back and crawled up his body, telling him in detail all of the things she was going to do to him before putting the words to action. As in every other aspect of her life, Annie had done her research. She knew what she wanted and she wasn't shy about getting it. Really he shouldn't have expected anything less.

Not that there hadn't been mistakes made on both of their parts. But with Annie even these had been different. Rather than eyerolls and sighs of disappointment if she didn't like something he did, she would give him that slow, sexy smile and tell him what to change. Sometimes it was as simple as, "Move your hand a little to your right and oh god yes that's it."

He had taken a page from her book and told her what he liked, too. As ever she was a quick study. Changing the angle of her pelvis just that little bit to make the fit perfect. Running her nails down his chest just the way he liked. Improvising and keeping what worked, discarding what didn't.

And when her inexperience did show itself somehow it wasn't awkward. If something she wanted to try didn't work she would just laugh joyously and say, "Well, that didn't work like I thought it would!" He had never laughed that much with a woman in or out of bed. It was a good thing he trusted her, or he could have taken her laughter the wrong way.

But then again, that was the real differences, wasn't it. They trusted each other completely. Maybe that's what he had been missing with other women all along. He knew her flaws and she knew his and they still wanted to give this thing between them a real try.

She shifted in her sleep and slowly opened her eyes. Glancing around the room in confusion as she woke up from her nap. Her long hair was spread out on the pillow and Jeff vowed to replace his utilitarian grey bedding with something that would do the rich chocolate color justice. Blue like those amazing eyes maybe. As soon as she saw him, that slow, sexy smile spread across her face. He already thought of it as 'his' smile. "Hey, Sleeping Beauty," he said softly.

"Hey yourself," she murmured as she rolled over to face him and mirrored his position. "Does that make you Prince Charming?" Her voice was slightly rough from sleep and use.

"Well if the shoe fits," he joked. Eyes tracing down her pale body as the sheet slid down with her shifting.

"That would make you Cinderella," she informed him with a teasing grin. She ran her nails absently up and down his arm, giving him goosebumps. "You know, I realize that at some point we have to get up. But I don't see how I'm expected to ever move again so I'm pretty sure my inner monologue is a liar."

"Inner monologue? You've lived with Abed too long," he teased, resting a hand on the curve of her waist. Maybe she had lived with Abed too long. Maybe she should wake up right here every morning. No, he mentally chastised himself. You don't have to make up for lost time. Just focus on the present.

Annie pulled the sheet aside and rolled over to get out of bed. His eyes caught on a series of small purple bruises on the ivory skin of her hips. He hissed and reached out to trace them with the fingertips that had caused them to begin with. "I'm so sorry, Annie. I didn't realize…"

"Huh?" she asked. Forehead wrinkling with confusion until she looked down and realized what he was looking at. Her eyes widened as she examined the bruises before chuckling softly. She put a hand under his chin until he met her eyes."I'm not made of glass. I'm not going to break. I promise. Besides," she said with a sultry gaze, "I liked it."

He made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a growl and reached out for her. Intending to drag her back into the bed with him and possibly never leave. But she laughed and danced away from him before twirling back around and taking his hand, straining comically to pull his tall, heavily muscled frame from the bed. He eventually relented, and laughing at the look on her face, followed her into the chrome and black bathroom.

He looked in the mirror as he always did when he passed one, and leaned over to inspect his neck. "Annie!" he exclaimed. "Did you give me a hickey?!" He touched the mark in disbelief. He glanced at her teasingly, meeting her eyes in the mirror. "You're an actual savage! I can see it now. You seem so poised and proper in those tailored clothes of yours but it's all a lie. You're like some wild animal!"

Annie burst into a fit of laughter as the stepped behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. She pressed a gentle kiss to his back. "Jeff I'm so sorry that you literally drove me feral with the powerful force of your lovemaking. I would like to issue a formal apology for any and all wounds you sustained while you were pou-"

"Okay okay!" He laughed at her as he pulled her around, so he could hug her properly, and dropped a kiss on her head. "Apology accepted!" He held her for a moment, savoring the way they fit together. He felt strong and powerful holding her tiny frame. But as much as he didn't want the rest of the world to intrude on them, he knew their friends would eventually start to worry.

With a regretful sigh he stepped back. "We should cleaned up and head back down there anyway. Before they all come up here to make sure we didn't kill each other." He opened the glass door to his standing shower and turned on the hot water, quickly filling the room with steam. He held out a hand for her with a grin and helped her into the glass and tile enclosure. "After you, Milady."

* * *

Annie laughed again as she moved to stand behind Jeff so he could rinse his hair. They had both been laughing at the awkward dance of actually showering with another person. "You know, they always make this seem so easy and sexy on tv but really it's just hilarious. You're like a foot taller than I am. You need more shower heads if we're ever going to try this again."

She started to turn around, still laughing, but his hand on her neck stopped her. "Stay right there," he said in her ear before moving her hair to the side and kissing and nibbling his way down the pale column of the throat.

She stopped at his touch, the firm pressure of his hand holding her hostage. As he slid her wet hair over her shoulder she shuddered. Amazed that something she did every day could be so completely erotic when it was him doing it.

"Put your hands on the wall," He told her. His other hand landing on her hip and locking her in place.

She turned her head and looked up to give him a questioning look.

"You called the shots the last two times. My turn," he rumbled, pressing against her.

Her whole body tensed in surprise and excitement. She was intensely curious where this was going but she trusted Jeff completely. Without hesitation she placed her hands on the surprisingly cool tiles in front of her. She could still feel the occasional droplet of hot water hit her even with his large body crowding her in. The two extremes fed her excitement.

"Good. Now no matter what happens, you leave you hands right there and your eyes on that wall. Do you think you can do that?" He asked in that same hypnotically compelling voice as his hands roamed her body, caressing and occasionally squeezing gently.

Wordlessly she nodded her agreement and focused on the black tile directly in front of her. When the soft shower puff touched her skin she gave a nervous laugh. She had been expecting something else but he was washing her back!

"Not a word, either. If you say one word I stop," he warned as he slid the puff over her skin.

She smirked and nodded again. Really did he think she couldn't keep quiet and still for two minutes? Please. Who did he think he was dealing with, here? Her smirk disappeared as his lips followed after the water rinsed the soap off of her skin. Lower he moved and she heard him shifting behind her. He pulled her hips until she took two steps back, bending forward to keep her hands on the wall. Would he really...

She shrieked when he blew a loud raspberry right into her rear. She whirled around and glared and the grinning man kneeling before her. "You tease!" She laughingly chastised him. "That isn't what I thought you were up to!"

He crooked an eyebrow and leered at her. "Oh? And did you think I had something more like this in mind?" He asked as he pressed her back into the shiny black tiles.

At the first languid swipe of his tongue she nearly fell down.

* * *

Shirley looked at the time on her phone for what had to be at least the fifteenth time since Annie and Jeff had left to have their discussion more than two hours ago. She thought it was strange that nobody else seemed even remotely concerned about their absence.

Buzz and Craig were floating in the deep end of the pool on two of the orange and blue inflatable rafts, lazily sipping on beers while they talked. She couldn't hear them from where she was but from the laughter that occasionally erupted from the men she could only assume it had nothing to do with work.

Duncan and Britta were handily beating Abed and Rachel in that game where the girls sat on the boys shoulders and tried to topple the other couple. Chicken pox? No that wasn't it, chicken fights? No, that didn't sound right either. Whatever it was called the shrieks of laughter indicated they were all having a great time.

As the reigning champion of Marco Polo, Shirley had opted to take a small break to call her boys and check up on them and was now enjoying just sitting beneath the bright blue sky and idly looking for shapes in the occasional small white clouds the passed overhead. She turned her head and smiled when a small red and green hummingbird hovered near one of the pots overflowing with pink and red flowers. Surrounded by the vivid colors of late spring she started thinking about a summer menu for Shirley's Sandwiches. Maybe key lime cupcakes?

She checked the time on her phone again and it had been officially over two and a half hours now since Annie and Jeff had left. "Guys?" she called out sweetly, but it didn't seem that they would hear her. She stood up and walked to the pool's edge. "Guys!" she bellowed in the deep Mom voice she'd perfected over the years, quickly getting everyone's attention.

Once all eyes were on her she gestured vaguely towards Jeff's condo and said, "It's been over two hours since they left. I'm going to go up and check on them."

She physically stumbled back a step as the six people in the pool all yelled, "NO!" in unison.

"Well excuse me for being concerned," she said. Irritated that they were all just ignoring that two of their friends could be up there doing irreparable damage to their friendship.

Abed and Craig shared a look across the pool and with a nod, Craig started to maneuver his raft towards the ladder. At the same time, Britta looked down and shared a look with Duncan. She hopped off of his shoulders and waded towards the edge of the pool.

Somehow Hickey got there first and gently but firmly took Shirley's arm, leading her to the table and leaning in to have a quiet conversation with her.

Everyone else climbed out of the pool and convened at the edge of the deep-end for a pow-wow.

"Wait," Britta said to the group. "Hickey knows?"

"Knows what?" Craig asked as he paddled over and climbed out to stand next to the other four.

"Umm that Jeff and Annie are probably up there boinking like bunnies since by now they've figured out they're in love?" She asked sarcastically. "Duh-doy! Try to keep up, guys!"

She and Duncan shared a high-five and Ian turned to the other three, pompously saying "May I remind you that Britta and I are trained or at least partially trained in the psychological arts. Very little can get past our keen observational skills and we are able to apply our knowledge of the human mind towards our observations."

Abed shared a look with Rachel as their British friend droned on. "Hijink number 24?" she proposed.

"Precisely," he replied. And together the partners promptly pushed the pompous professor back into the pool.

Duncan came back up to the surface sputtering but couldn't be heard over the laughter of the group.

Rachel ran to their bag and pulled out a laminated piece of paper and a wax pencil that so that she could mark this one off the list. The list was printed in small font and covered both the back and the front of the paper. She ran her finger down both sides of the paper, looking for the next likely item. She tapped one and smiled. Looking up at Abed she called out, "Next up is curiously complicated construction!"

Jeff stepped into his closet and shrugged on a white polo shirt to cover the mark on his neck. They weren't normally his style but he was glad he had at least a couple in his closet to wear until the bruising went away. He smiled to himself and absently touched the spot on his shoulder that Annie had marked. He'd always hated hickies. Hated that they took days to go away and that they basically screamed exactly what he'd been up to for anyone who saw them. And he would deny it if asked, but he liked that his girl had marked him as hers. It was different with Annie. Everything was.

They had put back on their bathing suits and were just about ready to head back down to join the group. Fortunately, Annie's retro styled bikini covered the bruises on her hips. However they hadn't been able to find the hair combs Jeff had thrown across the room earlier so her still wet hair was bound in a long braid pulled over her shoulder and held in place with a plain rubber band. She had put back on the shirt he had given her earlier as a temporary cover-up and her sandals. Other than wide smiles on kiss swollen lips and a satisfied, loose limbed walk, there was no physical evidence of what the two had been up to for the past few hours.

"Are you ready to do this?" She asked nervously. She was a little worried about what everyone was going to say. Those people were their family after all. "I'm nervous. Is it weird that I'm nervous? They're going to know. I mean sure they'll know but I mean, they'll KNOW."

Jeff put his hands on her shoulders and stopped her neurotic tirade with a deep kiss. After they broke apart, both a little short of breath, he assured her, "Everything's going to be fine. And if it isn't then, we'll deal with it. Let me ask you something. If they don't approve, does it change anything?"

She gave him a warm smile. "No," she said confidently. "Maybe if this had happened a few years ago it would have but, I know who I am and what I want. One of those things is you. The only people who get a vote in this are me and you."

"Did I ever tell you how hot you are when you don't take any shit?" He asked as he leaned down for another toe-curling kiss. "You know," he murmured in her ear, "we don't have to do down there. We can go right back to bed for another few months. It'll be like hibernating but with less sleep."

Annie laughed and stepped back from him as she slapped his chest in mock-outrage. "Jeff! Don't be gross!" The familiar words were accompanied by a new sparkle in her eyes.

He rolled his eyes even as he grinned. He didn't think he had ever smiled as much as he had in the past few hours. His face was actually sore from laughing and smiling so much. Together they walked into the living room. He gave her a half-bow and gestured to the front door. "Milady."

She playfully pulled the hem of the shirt she was wearing out like a skirt and curtseyed back at him, "Milord."

A few minutes later Jeff and Annie walked down the courtyard stairs and around the corner hand in hand. She gripped his hand tightly when Britta noticed them but he squeezed back encouragingly.

"Hey guys," Britta said breezily as she bent to rifle through the cooler. "There are still some hamburgers if you're hungry but Craig ate all of the hotdogs."

Craig shrugged and winked comically. "What can I say?"

Britta pulled out two beers and set them down at the edge of the pool before climbing down the ladder and swimming over next to Duncan. They floated there at the edge, with their chins resting on crossed arms.

Annie and Jeff looked at each other in confusion. This was weird. When had Britta ever passed over an opportunity to comment on either of their dating choices?

Rachel and Abed had constructed what looked to be an elaborate raft out of foam pool noodles and maneuvered it next to Britta and Duncan. "Hey guys!" Rachel said. "Listen, this thing isn't structurally sound, strictly speaking. Can one of you please grab us a couple of pops from the cooler?"

"It falls apart if we aren't both on it," Abed added. "We could have drawn up plans before we came to make sure we had enough raw materials, but that would have defeated the purpose."

Annie nodded and laughed. Confused but charmed. She grabbed a couple of sparkling lemonades from the cooler and reached out from the edge of the pool to hand them to her roommate and his girlfriend.

She returned to Jeff's side and threw him an inquisitive glance. He shrugged at her unasked question. He had no idea what to say. He had honestly expected to be mobbed the second they had returned and this uncharacteristic nonchalance was throwing him.

"Well I guess I'll grab us some food...then?" He asked. Not certain what to do now.

"Yeah...sounds good?" She said, obviously as weirded out as he was. She rose up on her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss. "Let's just go with it?"

Jeff nodded in agreement and walked over to the grill to uncover the remaining hamburgers. There was a cooler with carb-filled horrors that he wouldn't ever touch, but also raw veggies and a fruit salad. He made plates for both Annie and himself and took them over to the table where Shirley, Hickey, and Craig were sitting in the shade. "Hey," he said to both Hickey and Craig. When the two men looked at him he sincerely told them, "Thank you both. I mean it."

They nodded at him as Annie got to the table with sodas for both of them and sat next to him. "Oh this looks so good," she said reverently as she picked up the hamburger. "I'm starving!"

Jeff smothered a chuckle but was more than a little proud of himself for being responsible for her working up such an appetite.

Craig noticed his smirk and gave him an admonishing look. Jeff pulled an exaggerated innocent face in return and laughed when Craig rolled his eyes.

Annie looked up from devouring her food as she realized she missed something. Both Craig and Jeff gave her blank faces so she shrugged a shoulder and went back to eating.

Shirley had been caught up by the group after she had talked to Hickey. And she had agreed not to make a big deal out of it when they came back down...but she couldn't help herself. She reached out and gently put her hand on Annie's wrist. When the younger woman looked up from her plate with an inquisitive look she asked, "So...you and Jeff then?"

Annie looked over at Jeff and the two shared an intimate smile. She looked back at Shirley and confidently said, "Yeah. Me and Jeff." Earning her a happy smile from the other woman.

The rest of their friends got out of the pool and pulled up chairs until they were all sitting together. Jeff moved to sit closer to Annie while they made room for everyone. Duncan held out Britta's chair for her gallantly and Annie and Shirley both said, "Aww!" in unison.

Jeff slung an arm over Annie's shoulder tugged her in to kiss her cheek as Abed raised his drink to propose a toast, "Here's to the successful resolution of plots and their well earned happy endings."


End file.
